FIGURES  FROM  AMERICAN  HISTORY 


ALEXANDER    HAMILTON 

BY 

HENKY  JONES  FORD 


FIGURES  FROM  AMERICAN  HISTORY 

Now  Ready 

THOMAS  JEFFERSON 
By  David  Saville  Muzzey 

JEFFERSON  DAVIS 
By  Armistead  C.  Gordon 

STEPHEN  A.  DOUGLAS 
By  Louis  Howland 

ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 
By  Henry  Jones  Ford 

Further  volumes  will  follow  at  short  intervals,  th« 
list  including  WASHINGTON,  LINCOLN,  WEB 
STER,  GRANT,  LEE,  CLEVELAND,  and  others. 

CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S  SONS,  PUBLISHERS 


FIGURES  FROM  AMERICAN  HISTORY 


ALEXANDER    HAMILTON 


BY 

HENRY  JONES  FORD 

PROFESSOR  OF   POLITICS,    PRINCETON   UNIVERSITY 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 
1931 


^ 


COPYRIGHT,  1920,  BT 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


PREFACE 

LITTLE  material  is  available  for  a  biography  of 
Alexander  Hamilton  beyond  that  collected  by  his 
son,  John  Church  Hamilton,  and  his  grandson, 
Allan  McLane  Hamilton.  Much  that  once  existed 
was  lost.  Tuckerman's  "Life  of  General  Philip 
Schuyler"  relates  that  many  letters  from  Hamilton 
and  other  political  papers  were  burned  by  a  son  of 
one  of  Schuyler's  executors,  because  he  regarded 
them  as  containing  expressions  too  personal  to  be 
exposed  to  any  risk  of  publicity.  The  loss  to 
American  history  is  as  great  as  that  inflicted  by 
Charles  Thomson,  secretary  of  the  Continental 
Congress,  when  he  destroyed  his  memoirs  for  a 
like  reason.  A  bowdlerized  style  of  writing  history 
and  biography  was  once  in  vogue  that  made  such 
suppression  of  truth  seem  actually  meritorious,  and 
damage  was  done  that  can  never  be  repaired.  Ham 
ilton's  reputation  has  suffered  greatly  by  it.  His 
career  was  too  vivid  and  salient,  his  statesmanship 
too  incisive,  his  self-revelation  too  candid  to  admit 
of  the  bowdlerizing  process,  and  he  cannot  be  judged 
fairly  unless  all  is  brought  out  and  put  in  the  scales. 
Such  has  been  my  aim  in  the  present  work.  My 

877165 


vi  PREFACE 

special  acknowledgments  are  due  to  my  friend,  Mr. 
Charles  R.  Williams,  of  Princeton,  for  his  care  in 
verifying  references,  in  correcting  the  proofs,  and 
for  helpful  criticism. 

PRINCETON,  March  23, 1920. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  BIRTH  AND  FAMILY  CONNECTIONS      ....  1 

II.  A  PICKED-UP  EDUCATION 13 

III.  THE  OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  ...  24 

IV.  IN  THE  STATE  MILITIA 39 

V.  AT  HEADQUARTERS 55 

VI.  THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR 65 

VII.  FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP 80 

VIII.  ALLIANCE  WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY     ...  97 

IX.  A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON 114 

X.  THE  START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION    .    .  129 

XI.  THE  CRUMBLING  OF  THE  CONFEDERATION  .  143 

XII.  LAW  PRACTICE 159 

XIII.  THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT 172 

XIV.  THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR 186 

XV.  A  BREACH  IN  THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME  206 

XVI.  HAMILTON'S   RECOMMENDATIONS   DEFEATED  223 

XVII.  A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN 242 

vii 


viii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTEB  PAGE 

XVIII.  THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN 260 

XIX.  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION  278 

XX.  RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE 292 

XXL  PRIVATE  DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS     .  301 

XXII.  THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS 315 

XXIII.  THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR 329 

XXIV.  APPARENT  FAILURE 346 

XXV.  REVISED   ESTIMATES 357 

INDEX  375 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

CHAPTER  I 
BIRTH  AND  FAMILY  CONNECTIONS 

AT  present  the  term  West  Indies  suggests  something 
foreign  and  remote.  Such  was  not  the  case  when 
Alexander  Hamilton  was  born  in  Nevis,  one  of  the 
chain  of  islands  known  as  the  Lesser  Antilles.  The 
British  possessions  in  this  quarter  were  considered 
to  be  an  integral  port  of  the  newer  England  that  had 
been  planted  in  the  western  world.  A  compilation 
of  laws  published  in  1704,  for  the  use  of  "gentlemen 
trading  to  or  concerned  in  her  Majesty 's  planta 
tions,"  mentions  them  in  the  order,  Virginia,  Jamai 
ca,  Barbados,  Maryland,  New  England,  New  York, 
Carolina.  In  our  own  time  the  Lesser  Antilles  seem 
rather  farther  away  than  Europe,  since  a  quick  and 
regular  ferry  has  been  established  across  the  Atlan 
tic.  But  in  the  colonial  period  intercourse  between 
the  Antilles  and  the  mainland  was  easier  than  be 
tween  the  different  colonies  on  the  mainland.  The 
brigantines,  which  were  the  usual  means  of  convey 
ance,  made  the  voyage  with  speed  and  comfort,  as 
compared  with  the  conditions  of  land  travel  at  that 


3i:  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

time.  People  looking  about  for  places  in  which  to 
settle  would  naturally  include  the  West  Indies  in 
their  survey  of  American  opportunities.  Thus  it 
was  that  the  Reverend  Hugh  Knox,  who  did  so 
much  for  Hamilton's  early  education,  found  his 
way  there.  He  arrived  in  America  from  Ireland  in 
1753,  studied  for  the  ministry  under  the  Reverend 
Aaron  Burr,  at  Newark,  New  Jersey,  and  after  or 
dination  went  to  St.  Croix  as  pastor  to  the  settlers 
there.  To  view  Hamilton's  birthplace  as  it  was 
then  regarded,  Nevis  should  be  thought  of  simply  as 
an  outlying  American  colony. 

Nevis  is  one  of  the  group  known  as  the  Leeward 
Islands,  the  northernmost  of  the  Lesser  Antilles. 
It  has  an  area  of  only  fifty  square  miles,  almost 
round  in  form,  the  centre,  a  peak  of  3,200  feet,  rising 
so  gradually  that,  viewed  from  the  sea,  the  island 
looks  like  a  perfect  cone.  Settled  originally  from 
St.  Kitts,  Nevis  has  been  a  British  colony  since 
1628.  Here  Alexander  Hamilton  was  born,  January 
11,  1757. 

At  that  time  the  West  Indies  figured  grandly  in 
the  world's  affairs.  With  slave  labor  and  with  the 
demand  then  existing  for  their  products,  the  islands 
were  reservoirs  of  wealth  for  whose  possession  all  the 
powers  of  western  Europe  had  contended,  produc 
ing  the  diversity  of  national  ownership  that  has 
come  down  to  our  own  times.  The  great  planters 
lived  in  magnificent  style.  Nowhere  probably  in 


BIRTH  AND  FAMILY  CONNECTIONS    3 

the  western  world  was  there  such  a  display  of  luxuri 
ous  dress,  fine  equipage,  and  profuse  hospitality  as 
in  the  West  Indian  capitals.  The  fame  of  this 
grandeur  was  world- wide.  It  was  a  theme  that  in 
spired  poetic  fancy,  and  the  great  West  Indian 
staple  was  the  subject  of  an  epic  that  ranked  as  a 
notable  poem  in  its  day,  but  is  now  preserved  from 
oblivion  only  by  references  to  it  in  Boswell's  Life  of 
Johnson.  The  author,  Doctor  James  Grainger, 
while  on  a  visit  to  the  West  Indies,  married  the 
widow  of  a  Nevis  planter.  He  wrote  a  poem  in 
four  books  on  the  cultivation  of  the  sugar-cane, 
which  was  published  in  England  in  1764.  His  ac 
count  of  the  way  in  which  the  cane  suffered  from 
attacks  of  vermin  began  with  a  line  over  which 
Doctor  Johnson  made  merry : 

"Now,  Muse,  let's  sing  of  rats." 

But  this  appeared  only  in  the  first  edition,  and  the 
poem  was  received  with  so  much  favor  that  piratical 
editions  of  it  were  printed.  Grainger  eventually 
settled  in  St.  Kitts,  where  he  died  in  1766.  Hamil 
ton,  who  was  then  nine  years  old,  must  have  known 
the  poet,  as  St.  Kitts  and  Nevis  are  so  close  together 
that  they  form  one  community.  With  the  decay  of 
the  sugar  interest  the  social  grandeur  of  Hamil 
ton's  age  passed  away.  The  great  stone  mansions 
of  the  wealthy  planters  were  built  with  a  solidity 
that  might  have  insured  their  perpetuity  in  any 


4  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

other  climate,  but  with  the  decline  of  prosperity 
many  became  untenanted,  windows  would  be  broken, 
there  would  be  no  one  to  close  the  storm-shutters, 
and,  when  the  tremendous  blasts  of  a  West  Indian 
hurricane  gained  admittance  to  the  interior,  away 
would  go  the  roof,  and  only  the  walls  would  be  left 
standing,  soon  to  be  buried  in  tropical  thickets. 
Now  lizards  frisk  and  land-crabs  scuttle  in  the  ruins 
of  houses  that  were  brilliant  social  centres  in  Ham 
ilton's  day. 

A  circumstance  that  was  brought  up  against 
Hamilton  in  his  political  career — particularly  by 
John  Adams — was  the  illegitimacy  of  his  birth. 
The  bare  legal  fact  is  indisputable,  but  it  is  far  from 
meaning  what  that  fact  would  ordinarily  imply.  It 
was  a  result  of  the  lax  conditions  of  the  times,  which 
produced  irregular  social  consequences  in  all  the 
American  colonies,  and  it  was  the  habit  to  make 
allowances  for  them.  One  may  be  sure  that  the 
great  patroon,  General  Schuyler,  would  never  have 
given  his  daughter  to  Hamilton  if  a  social  stigma 
had  actually  rested  upon  him.  Scottish  and  Hugue 
not  families  were  prominent  in  the  British  occupa 
tion  of  the  Lesser  Antilles,  and  Alexander  Hamilton 
came  of  both  these  stocks.  Among  the  Huguenot 
families  was  one  originally  named  Faucette,  which 
became  Englished  as  Fawcett.  John  Fawcett,  who 
settled  in  Nevis,  was  a  medical  practitioner  until 
his  gains  were  large  enough  to  enable  him  to  retire 


BIRTH  AND  FAMILY  CONNECTIONS    5 

from  professional  work  and  live  as  a  wealthy  planter. 
His  wife  Mary,  of  whose  family  there  is  apparently 
no  record,  was  twenty  years  younger  and  had 
means  of  her  own.  They  built  a  great  house  on 
their  country  estate  and  had  also  a  town  house  for 
occupancy  when  the  Captain-General  was  holding 
his  official  court  in  Nevis  and  the  fashionable  season 
was  at  its  height.  After  twenty  years  of  married 
life,  when  Doctor  Fawcett  had  become  gouty  and 
irritable,  his  wife  demanded  and  obtained  a  separate 
maintenance.  The  only  child  left  at  home  at  the 
time  of  the  separation  was  Rachel,  born  after  her 
sisters  had  grown  up.  The  mother  moved  to  an 
estate  she  owned  on  St.  Kitts,  taking  with  her 
Rachel,  then  four  years  old.  Great  care  was  taken 
with  Rachel's  education,  and  she  was  proficient  in 
languages  and  in  the  young-lady  accomplishments 
of  the  day — painting,  singing,  and  ability  to  play 
the  harp  and  the  guitar.  She  is  described  as  having 
fair  hair  with  a  reddish  tinge,  sparkling  gray  eyes, 
a  complexion  of  the  marked  whiteness  which  seems 
almost  peculiar  to  the  sheltered  gentlewomen  of  the 
tropics,  with  features  finely  modelled  and  full  of 
vivacity  and  charm.  She  became  the  mother  of 
Alexander  Hamilton,  but  that  was  after  an  unhappy 
experience  producing  conditions  from  which  she 
escaped  by  an  irregular  union. 

When  she  was  sixteen  her  mother  arranged  for 
her  a  marriage  with  John  Michael  Levine,  a  Dane  of 


6  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

wealth  and  social  position,  who  had  come  to  St. 
Croix  with  the  idea  of  buying  an  estate  there  and 
settling  down  to  the  life  of  a  planter.  The  wedding 
was  a  fashionable  event,  followed  by  a  trip  to 
Europe,  Mrs.  Fawcett  accompanying  the  bridal 
couple.  After  remaining  long  enough  to  see  her 
daughter  presented  at  court  and  splendidly  received 
in  Copenhagen  society,  Mrs.  Fawcett  returned  to 
the  West  Indies,  the  Levines  following  some  months 
after.  Meanwhile  the  young  bride  had  had  some 
revulsion  of  feeling  which  turned  her  against  her 
husband.  Watching  her  chance,  she  ran  away  to 
her  mother,  boarding  a  ship  just  as  it  was  leaving 
St.  Croix  for  St.  Kitts,  while  her  husband  was  at 
tending  some  state  function.  The  differences  be 
tween  them — whatever  they  were — were  never  set 
tled,  and  she  never  returned  to  her  husband,  but  a 
boy  born  after  the  separation  was  turned  over  to 
the  father's  care  while  still  a  small  infant. 

After  some  years  of  the  forlorn  life  of  a  grass- 
widow  the  young  woman  met  James  Hamilton  and 
the  two  fell  deeply  in  love.  He  was  the  fourth  son 
of  Alexander  Hamilton,  of  Grange,  in  Ayrshire, 
Scotland,  who  was  the  fifteenth  in  descent  from 
David  Hamilton,  who  had  a  charter  of  land  from 
his  uncle,  Alan  Hamilton,  of  Lethberd,  confirmed  by 
the  overlord,  Archibald,  Earl  of  Douglas,  January  29, 
1411.  Like  many  another  cadet  of  ancient  Scottish 
lineage,  James  Hamilton  had  emigrated  in  search  of 


'  BIRTH  AND  FAMILY  CONNECTIONS    7 

better  opportunities  for  advancement  than  he  could 
find  at  home.  He  reached  St.  Kitts,  where  he  had 
a  kinsman,  William  Hamilton,  an  old  friend  of  the 
Fawcetts.  William  was  a  man  of  local  eminence,  a 
physician,  a  planter,  and  a  member  of  the  Council. 
James  Hamilton  was  a  well-educated  and  well-born 
Scottish  gentleman.  When  the  two  met  he  was 
about  twenty-one  and  Rachel  Levine  was  about 
twenty.  The  two  met  often  in  society,  for  Rachel's 
friends  stood  by  her  and  she  moved  in  the  best 
circles.  Mrs.  Fawcett  died  and  a  beautiful,  attrac 
tive,  accomplished  young  woman  was  left  alone. 
The  two  wanted  to  marry  and  could  not.  Efforts 
to  free  Rachel  were  unavailing.  Finally  the  two 
decided  to  unite  outside  of  the  law.  The  circum 
stances  of  the  case  received  much  indulgent  consid 
eration,  but  the  investigations  made  by  Mrs.  Ather- 
ton  on  the  spot  show  that  the  couple  experienced 
social  censure.  This  explains  the  inconvenient  ar 
rangement  made  for  their  married  life.  Rachel  had 
through  inheritance  from  her  father  a  place  in  Nevis, 
to  which  they  moved,  although  Hamilton's  business 
was  in  St.  Kitts  and  he  had  to  cross  the  two-mile 
strait  between  the  two  islands  almost  daily.  But 
the  kinsfolk  and  old  friends  of  the  Fawcetts  and 
Hamiltons  stood  by  the  young  couple,  their  home 
was  hospitable  and  attractive,  they  drew  about 
them  a  circle  of  friends,  and  obtained  a  recognized 
position  in  Nevis  society. 


8  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

The  circumstances  should  be  viewed  not  only  with 
regard  to  local  conditions  but  also  with  regard  to 
the  general  conditions  then  existing  as  to  marriage 
law  in  the  British  Empire.  The  old  canon  law, 
which  admitted  of  the  annulment  of  marriage  entered 
into  by  an  inexperienced  girl  under  duress,  had  been 
overthrown,  and  secular  jurisprudence  had  not  yet 
extended  its  cognizance  to  such  situations.  From 
the  traditional  information  collected  by  Mrs.  Ather- 
ton  it  appears  that  Rachel  had  been  much  averse  to 
the  marriage  with  Levine  and  gave  way  only  under 
pressure.  The  only  way  in  which  she  could  have 
obtained  divorce  was  by  a  special  act  of  Parliament, 
always  a  matter  of  great  expense  and  difficulty,  and 
quite  unattainable  in  St.  Kitts.  It  is  plain  that  the 
behavior  of  James  Hamilton  and  his  consort  stood 
quite  apart  in  moral  quality  from  that  which  com 
monly  attends  an  irregular  union.  Rachel  always 
had  the  position  of  an  honored  wife,  and  received 
social  recognition  as  such.  In  later  years  the  Ham- 
iltons  of  Scotland  were  glad  to  claim  relationship, 
but  there  is  no  evidence  of  their  interest  until  Alex 
ander  Hamilton  had  become  famous. 

But,  while  his  birth  and  rearing  had  none  of  the 
disadvantages  which  the  term  illegitimate  might 
suggest,  he  did  experience  some  of  the  inconve 
niences  of  poverty,  not,  however,  to  a  greater  extent 
than  was  probably  a  help  in  fortifying  his  character. 
James  Hamilton  went  into  business  in  St.  Kitts, 


BIRTH  AND  FAMILY  CONNECTIONS    9 

had  trouble  with  his  partners,  withdrew  from  the 
firm,  and  set  up  for  himself.  His  wife  sold  her  St. 
Kitts  estate  to  provide  him  with  capital,  which  was 
sunk  in  unsuccessful  enterprises,  and  the  family  was 
impoverished.  Peter  Lytton,  husband  of  one  of 
Rachel's  elder  sisters,  gave  James  Hamilton  the 
position  of  manager  of  a  cattle  estate  on  St.  Croix, 
and  he  moved  there  with  his  family.  The  Hamil- 
tons  were  kindly  received  by  the  Lyttons  and  also  by 
the  Mitchells,  the  family  into  which  the  other  sister 
had  married.  But  James  Hamilton  made  a  failure 
of  his  management,  fell  out  with  his  brother-in-law, 
and  in  the  third  year  after  the  family  settlement  in 
St.  Croix  he  went  to  St.  Vincent  in  search  of  employ 
ment.  He  kept  in  correspondence  with  his  wife, 
but  was  never  able  to  re-establish  his  household,  and 
his  family  became  dependent  upon  his  wife's  rela 
tives.  The  Lyttons  took  Mrs.  Hamilton  and  her 
children  into  their  own  home,  allotting  to  her  use 
an  upstairs  wing  of  their  great  mansion.  Two  years 
passed  by,  and  James  Hamilton  had  not  succeeded 
in  doing  any  better  in  business  than  to  earn  a  small 
salary;  then  came  a  final  severance  through  the 
death  of  Mrs.  Hamilton,  February  16,  1768.  She 
was  then  only  thirty-two  years  old.  James  Hamil 
ton  lived  for  many  years  after,  remaining  on  St. 
Vincent,  where  he  died  on  June  3,  1799.  Notwith 
standing  his  separation  from  his  family,  his  famous 
son  regarded  him  with  affection.  A  letter  has  been 


10  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

preserved  from  Alexander  Hamilton  to  his  brother, 
written  from  New  York,  June  23,  1785,  in  which  he 
said: 

But  what  has  become  of  our  dear  father  ?  It  is  an  age 
since  I  have  heard  from  him  or  of  him,  though  I  have 
written  him  several  letters.  Perhaps,  alas,  he  is  no  more, 
and  I  shall  not  have  the  pleasing  opportunity  of  con 
tributing  to  render  the  close  of  his  life  more  happy  than 
the  progress  of  it.  My  heart  bleeds  at  the  recollection  of 
his  misfortunes  and  embarrassments.  Sometimes  I  flat 
ter  myself  his  brothers  have  extended  their  support  to 
him;  and  that  he  now  enjoys  tranquillity  and  ease.  At 
other  times  I  fear  he  is  suffering  in  indigence.  Should  he 
be  alive,  inform  him  of  my  inquiries;  beg  him  to  write  to 
me,  and  tell  him  how  ready  I  shall  be  to  devote  myself 
and  all  I  have  to  his  accommodation  and  happiness. 

Eventually  Alexander  Hamilton  invited  his  father 
to  make  his  home  with  him.  In  a  letter  of  June  12, 
1793,  the  father  wrote:  "My  bad  state  of  health  has 
prevented  my  going  to  sea  at  this  time."  More 
over,  the  war  between  England  and  France  made 
travel  dangerous.  But  he  added:  "We  daily  expect 
news  of  a  peace,  and  when  that  takes  place,  provided 
it  is  not  too  late  in  the  season,  I  will  embark  in  the 
first  vessel  that  sails  for  Philadelphia."  The  letter 
sent  "respectful  compliments"  to  Mrs.  Hamilton 
and  the  children,  and  closed  with  wishes  of  health 
and  happiness  to  his  "dear  Alexander,"  subscribed 


BIRTH  AND  FAMILY  CONNECTIONS    11 

by  "your  very  affectionate  father,  James  Hamilton." 
Although  the  elder  Hamilton  lived  for  six  years  after 
the  date  of  that  letter,  he  was  never  well  enough  to 
attempt  the  voyage,  and  the  two  never  met  after 
the  son  left  the  West  Indies.  That  they  corre 
sponded  regularly  is  attested  by  Hamilton's  letter 
of  1797  to  a  Scotch  kinsman,  in  which  he  said: 

It  is  now  several  months  since  I  have  heard  from  my 
father,  who  continued  at  the  island  of  St.  Vincent's.  My 
anxiety  at  this  silence  would  be  greater  than  it  is  were  it 
not  for  the  probable  interruption  and  precariousness  of 
intercourse  which  is  produced  by  the  war.  I  have  strongly 
pressed  the  old  gentleman  to  come  and  reside  with  me, 
which  would  afford  him  every  enjoyment  of  which  his 
advanced  age  is  capable;  but  lie  has  declined  it  on  the 
ground  that  the  advice  of  his  physicians  leads  him  to  fear 
that  the  change  of  climate  would  be  fatal  to  him.  The 
next  best  thing  for  me  is,  in  proportion  to  my  means,  to 
endeavor  to  increase  his  comforts  where  he  is. 

From  the  same  letter  it  appears  that  the  Lyttons 
and  the  Mitchells,  who  lived  in  affluence  during 
Hamilton's  boyhood,  were  then  in  straitened  cir 
cumstances.  Hamilton's  expense-book,  July  1, 1796, 
records  a  donation  of  one  hundred  dollars  to  Mrs. 
Mitchell.  This  book  also  records  money  sent  to 
Hamilton's  father  and  younger  brother,  to  the 
amount  of  several  thousand  dollars,  during  the 
years  1796  to  1799,  when  Hamilton  was  himself  in 


12  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

difficulties  over  the  insufficiency  of  his  income  to 
sustain  expenditure  required  by  his  position.  Little 
is  known  about  the  career  of  Hamilton's  younger 
brother,  except  that  he  remained  in  the  West  Indies 
and  was  obscure  in  character  and  fortune. 


CHAPTER  II 
A  PICKED-UP  EDUCATION 

ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  was  eleven  years  old  when 
his  mother  died;  his  brother  James  was  five  years 
younger.  Alexander's  education  seems  to  have  been 
desultory,  but  he  learned  to  speak  French  fluently. 
That  language  has  always  had  a  commercial  value 
in  the  Lesser  Antilles  that  brings  it  into  extensive 
use,  and  a  clever  child  is  apt  to  pick  up  some  knowl 
edge  of  it.  Hamilton  acquired  fluency  by  continual 
practice  with  his  mother.  In  other  studies  he  was 
helped  by  the  Reverend  Hugh  Knox,  who  was  a  fre 
quent  visitor  at  the  Lytton  mansion,  and  who  lent 
the  boy  books  and  took  an  active  interest  in  his 
progress.  After  his  mother's  death  Alexander  went 
to  live  with  his  aunt,  Mrs.  Mitchell.  Her  husband 
had  made  a  fortune  in  the  slave  trade;  he  owned  a 
large  general  store  and  also  plantations  yielding 
sugar,  molasses,  and  rum.  He  had  a  town  house  in 
Christianstadt,  and,  living  there,  Hamilton  was  now 
able  to  go  regularly  to  school  with  Knox;  who  lived 
in  the  same  town.  He  was  one  of  a  small  class  of 
students  to  whom  the  Presbyterian  pastor  gave  les 
sons  in  Latin  and  mathematics,  but  Hamilton  could 
not  have  gone  far  in  his  studies,  as  he  was  only 

13 


14  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

twelve  years  old  when  he  went  to  work  for  Nicholas 
Cruger,  proprietor  of  a  large  general  store.  Such 
rudiments  of  learning  as  he  had  received  were  stead 
ily  improved  by  assiduous  reading.  Evidence  of 
his  youthful  ambition  is  given  by  a  letter  from  Ham 
ilton  to  his  chum,  Edward  Stevens,  saying: 

...  for  to  confess  my  weakness,  Ned,  my  ambition 
is  prevalent,  so  that  I  contemn  tne  grovelling  condition 
of  a  clerk,  or  the  like,  to  which  my  fortune  condemns  me, 
and  would  willingly  risk  my  life,  though  not  my  charac 
ter,  to  exalt  my  station.  I  am  confident,  Ned,  that  my 
youth  excludes  me  from  any  hopes  of  immediate  prefer 
ment,  nor  do  I  desire  it;  but  I  mean  to  prepare  the  way 
for  futurity.  I'm  no  philosopher,  you  see,  and  may  be 
justly  said  to  build  castles  in  the  air;  my  folly  makes  me 
ashamed,  and  beg  you'll  conceal  it;  yet  Neddy,  we  have 
seen  such  schemes  successful,  when  the  projector  is  con 
stant. 

This  letter,  which  is  a  stock  quotation  in  Hamilton 
biographies,  is  usually  presented  as  evidence  of  pre 
cocious  ambition,  but  this  is  not  really  a  remarkable 
circumstance.  Nothing  is  more  common  than  for 
youth  to  have  such  dreams.  Alexander  Hamilton 
hit  the  mark,  but  myriads  have  had  like  aims  who 
missed  the  mark  and  settled  down  to  obscure  for 
tunes.  The  letter  is  a  remarkable  one  to  have  been 
written  by  a  boy  not  yet  thirteen,  but  it  is  remark 
able  not  so  much  for  its  declaration  of  purpose  as 
for  its  revelation  of  the  writer's  character.  Its 


A  PICKED-UP  EDUCATION  15 

youthful  pomposity  attests  his  familiarity  with  the 
literary  models  of  the  age.  The  style  is  a  clever 
boy's  imitation  of  the  rolling  periods  of  the  eigh 
teenth-century  historians  and  essayists.  Hamilton 
turned  out  to  be  one  of  the  small  class  of  men  of 
whom  it  has  been  justly  said  that  they  appear  as 
levers  to  uplift  the  earth  and  roll  it  into  another 
course,  but  they  do  not  attain  to  such  rare  functions 
by  the  high  range  of  their  ambition  but  by  the  large 
development  of  their  powers.  "The  grovelling  con 
dition  of  a  clerk"  which  he  contemned  was  probably 
of  great  value  as  a  discipline;  for  nothing  braces  the 
mind  so  much  as  training  in  ability  to  apply  its 
powers  to  disagreeable  tasks.  Certain  it  is  that 
Hamilton  put  his  mind  to  his  work  as  a  clerk  with 
energy  and  success,  and  it  was  by  doing  well  what 
was  then  in  his  sphere  of  opportunity  that  larger 
prospects  were  opened.  His  ability  was  such  that 
his  employer  trusted  him  with  important  affairs,  and 
in  1770  he  was  left  in  charge  of  the  business  while 
Mr.  Cruger  was  on  a  trip  to  America.  The  diversi 
fied  experience  which  Hamilton  obtained  in  business 
management,  and  the  habits  of  accuracy  and  cir 
cumspection  which  trading  pursuits  tend  to  develop, 
were  good  training  for  the  career  which  made  him 
famous. 

Hamilton's  desire  for  a  college  education  was  well 
known  to  friends  and  relatives.  They  had  the 
means  to  gratify  that  desire,  and  withheld  it  rather 


16  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

from  inattention  or  from  inertia  than  from  positive 
unwillingness.  A  chance  event  produced  a  concen 
tration  of  influence  that  was  decisive.  In  August, 
1772,  a  terrible  hurricane  swept  St.  Croix,  causing 
great  wreckage  and  ruin.  Hamilton  wrote  an  ac 
count  of  it  which  was  published  in  a  St.  Kitts  news 
paper,  there  being  no  English  newspaper  in  St. 
Croix.  It  attracted  much  attention  and  caused  a 
strong  sentiment  that  so  clever  a  youth  ought  to 
have  the  best  advantages.  Arrangements  were  then 
made  by  his  aunts  for  sending  him  to  America  for 
a  college  education.  There  have  been  many  in 
stances  of  such  benefactions  to  promising  youths  in 
West  Indian  annals,  but  the  case  of  Alexander  Ham 
ilton  is  the  most  illustrious.  He  sailed  on  a  vessel 
bound  to  Boston,  which  was  reached  in  October, 
1772,  and  he  at  once  took  passage  for  New  York. 
He  never  returned  to  the  West  Indies,  but  spent  the 
rest  of  his  life  in  the  United  States. 

It  has  been  generally  assumed  in  biographies  that 
Hamilton's  interest  in  the  American  struggle  was 
excited  by  the  influences  of  his  collegiate  career,  but 
it  is  probable  that  he  brought  that  interest  with 
him,  for  the  same  issues  were  quite  as  absorbing  to 
thought  in  the  West  Indies  as  on  the  American  con 
tinent.  Indeed,  the  constitutional  temper  which 
was  manifested  in  those  times  has  been  better  pre 
served  in  the  West  Indies  than  in  continental  Amer 
ica.  As  the  English  in  Ireland  have  preserved  the 


A  PICKED-UP  EDUCATION  17 

Shakesperian  pronunciation  that  has  been  lost  in 
England  itself  through  phonetic  change;  as  Nova 
Scotia  has  preserved  seventeenth-century  customs 
that  have  died  out  in  Scotland  itself;  as  one  may 
find  in  the  West  Indies  features  of  the  seventeenth- 
century  organization  of  local  government  that  have 
disappeared  in  the  mother  country;  so  too  one  may 
note  relics  of  political  thought,  characteristic  of  all 
the  American  colonies  in  Hamilton's  boyhood,  still 
preserved  in  the  West  Indies,  although  now  extinct 
in  the  United  States  through  the  political  transfor 
mations  it  has  experienced.  St.  Kitts  and  Nevis 
have  lost  the  representative  assemblies  they  possessed 
in  Hamilton's  day,  and  the  local  legislature  is  now 
nominated  by  the  Crown.  But  Barbados  still  man 
ages  its  own  affairs  under  a  charter  of  the  same  type 
as  was  originally  granted  to  Virginia  and  Massachu 
setts,  and  while  these  have  long  since  adopted  other 
constitutional  arrangements,  the  Barbados  charter 
is  still  in  operation  and  the  colonial  assembly  occu 
pies  the  same  position  and  displays  the  same  consti 
tutional  spirit  as  was  evinced  by  the  Virginia  House 
of  Burgesses  and  by  the  Massachusetts  General 
Court  in  the  colonial  period.  An  instance  of  this 
spirit,  displayed  in  1816,  may  be  exhibited  as  a  spec 
imen  of  political  doctrine  which  was  clamorous 
throughout  the  West  Indies  during  Hamilton's  boy 
hood.  A  bill  had  been  introduced  in  the  British 
House  of  Commons  providing  for  a  local  official, 


18  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

with  fees  fixed  by  imperial  authority.  This  proposal 
was  denounced  by  the  Barbados  Assembly  in  terms 
that  exactly  reproduce  what  was  common  doctrine 
in  all  the  American  colonies  when  Hamilton  was  a 
child.  The  speaker  of  the  Barbados  Assembly  de 
clared: 

There  is  a  right  which  every  British  subject  possesses, 
destroyed  by  no  lapse  of  time  or  circumstance,  namely, 
that  as  the  burdens  of  the  people  are  borne  by  the  great 
mass  of  the  community,  they  cannot  be  imposed  without 
the  consent  of  those  who  represent  the  interests  and  sym 
pathize  with  the  wants  of  the  bulk  of  the  people.  It  mat 
ters  not  on  what  soil  an  Englishman  may  have  fixed  his 
hut,  or  in  what  uncongenial  climate  he  may  earn  a  pre 
carious  subsistence;  the  pittance  of  his  industry  is  safe, 
except  for  the  aids  for  the  general  benefit  voted  by  the 
power  of  the  representative  system. 

American  legislative  bodies  have  been  reformed 
out  of  all  likeness  to  their  original  pattern,  and  the 
representative  assembly  has  declined  to  a  singularly 
humble  and  subordinate  position  in  the  constitu 
tional  scheme,  so  it  is  now  rather  in  Barbados  than 
anywhere  in  the  United  States  that  such  a  constitu 
tional  atmosphere  is  preserved  as  that  in  which 
Alexander  Hamilton  grew  up.  The  Stamp  Act, 
which  was  the  beginning  of  the  series  of  measures 
that  provoked  the  American  Revolution,  was  passed 
in  1765,  when  Hamilton  was  eight  years  old.  One 
may  be  sure  that  he  often  heard  it  discussed,  for 


A  PICKED-UP  EDUCATION  19 

resentment  was  as  keen  and  protests  were  as  em 
phatic  in  the  West  Indies  as  on  the  mainland.  In 
St.  Kitts  the  people  burned  all  the  stamped  papers 
sent  to  the  island  and  made  the  official  distributors 
resign.  These  measures  were  carried  out  in  a  sys 
tematic  way,  with  a  show  of  orderly  procedure. 
Those  taking  part  in  them  moved  over  to  Nevis  in  a 
body  to  assist  the  settlers  there  to  do  likewise.  In 
both  islands  the  Stamp  Act  was  defeated  by  solid 
resistance.  The  issues  that  culminated  in  the 
American  Revolution  were  thus  familiar  knowledge 
in  the  islands  and  gave  as  strong  a  tincture  to  the 
ideas  and  prepossessions  of  the  rising  generation  as 
on  the  American  continent.  When  during  this 
troublous  period  Alexander  Hamilton  arrived  in 
New  York  to  begin  his  college  education,  he  was 
already  an  ardent  American  patriot. 

He  brought  with  him  letters  of  introduction  which 
obtained  for  him  access  to  the  best  society,  into 
which  he  was  received  with  the  easy  hospitality  of 
the  times.  The  bright,  clever,  attractive  West  In 
dian  lad  soon  made  friends  of  lifelong  value.  The 
support  of  the  Livingston  and  Schuyler  families  was 
the  basis  of  the  power  which  Hamilton  acquired  in 
New  York  politics  and  acquaintanceship  with  mem 
bers  of  these  families  began  while  he  was  attending 
Francis  Barber's  grammar  school  at  Elizabethtown, 
New  Jersey.  This  school  had  no  provision  for 
lodgers  and  students  boarded  around  as  they  them- 


20  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

selves  arranged.  It  was  a  common  thing  for  those 
well  introduced  to  be  invited  into  the  homes  of  the 
neighboring  gentry.  In  this  way  Hamilton  lived 
for  some  time  with  the  family  of  Elias  Boudinot, 
already  a  prominent  man  in  New  Jersey  politics. 
Another  of  the  friends  made  by  Hamilton  in  this 
period  was  William  Livingston,  at  whose  house, 
Liberty  Hall,  he  stayed  frequently,  meeting  there 
men  who  became  eminent.  Among  them  was  John 
Jay,  who  married  one  of  Livingston's  daughters. 
Livingston  himself  became  governor  of  New  Jersey 
during  the  Revolution. 

In  biographies  of  Hamilton  written  by  his  own 
descendants  it  is  asserted  that  he  went  to  Barber's 
school  to  prepare  for  Princeton,  that  in  little  over  a 
year  he  was  ready  and  would  have  entered  there 
except  for  the  fact  that  President  Witherspoon  re 
fused  him  permission  to  go  through  in  shorter  time 
than  was  allowed  by  the  curriculum.  There  is  no 
record  at  Princeton  of  the  application  Hamilton  is 
said  to  have  made,  but  so  many  circumstances  har 
monize  with  the  family  tradition  that  it  may  be 
regarded  as  well  authenticated.  It  is  quite  char 
acteristic  of  Hamilton's  nature  and  of  his  circum 
stances  that  he  should  have  desired  to  get  his  college 
degree  as  soon  as  possible.  It  cannot  be  doubted 
that  it  was  his  original  intention  to  go  to  Princeton. 
The  Reverend  Hugh  Knox,  his  first  instructor,  was 
a  Princeton  man;  so  was  Barber,  under  whose  tuition 


A  PICKED-UP  EDUCATION  21 

Hamilton  placed  himself;  so  too  was  Boudinot, 
with  whom  he  lived.  That,  after  all,  he  should  have 
turned  aside  to  King's  College,  New  York,  was  cer 
tainly  an  afterthought,  and  the  only  probable  ex 
planation  of  it  is  that  he  was  refused  the  privilege 
he  desired  of  passing  from  class  to  class  as  he  was 
able  to  qualify. 

King's  College,  the  germ  of  Columbia  University, 
did  not  then  rank  with  Princeton  in  reputation  or  in 
equipment.  The  maintenance  of  the  regular  curric 
ulum  was  the  work  of  only  one  man,  the  Reverend 
Doctor  Myles  Cooper,  who  gave  the  courses  in  Latin, 
Greek,  English,  mathematics,  and  philosophy.  Ham 
ilton  took  them  all.  In  company  with  his  friend, 
Edward  Stevens,  who  was  studying  medicine,  Ham 
ilton  also  attended  the  lectures  of  Doctor  Samuel 
Clossey,  who  had  the  chair  in  anatomy.  The  only 
other  known  member  of  the  faculty  was  Doctor 
Peter  Middleton,  who  lectured  on  chemistry.  Ham 
ilton  entered  as  a  private  student,  attached  to  no 
particular  class  but  allowed  to  attend  any.  He  ap 
plied  himself  to  his  studies  with  great  diligence, 
employing  a  tutor  and  scheduling  his  days  so  that 
no  time  should  be  wasted.  But,  after  all,  he  never 
finished  his  college  course  and  was  not  graduated, 
as  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolutionary  War  caused 
the  college  to  be  deserted  for  the  camp.  Hamilton, 
like  many  other  young  men  at  that  time,  was  pre 
maturely  withdrawn  from  study  and  thrown  into 


22  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

war  and  politics  by  the  pressure  of  events.  The 
prominent  dates  show  how  brief  were  his  opportuni 
ties  for  systematic  education.  He  arrived  in  New 
York  October,  1772;  in  the  autumn  of  1773  he  en 
tered  King's  College;  in  1774  the  Continental  Con 
gress  held  its  first  session,  and  in  that  same  year 
Hamilton  began  his  career  as  a  public  speaker  and 
a  pamphleteer.  But  a  student  animated  by  definite 
purpose  and  pursuing  it  with  steady,  concentrated 
effort  can  do  a  great  deal  in  two  years,  and  there  is 
ample  evidence  that  Hamilton  acquired  sound  schol 
arship,  and  with  it  the  power  of  applying  his  mind 
with  energy  and  success  to  any  task.  He  kept  on 
with  his  studies  after  he  left  college  to  join  the  army. 
A  pay-book  kept  by  Hamilton  in  1776,  as  commander 
of  a  New  York  company  of  artillery,  is  interspersed 
with  notes  and  reflections  upon  political  philosophy 
and  public  finance,  and  it  contains  a  list  of  books 
which  is  given  below  just  as  he  wrote  it: 

Rousseau's  Emilius. 

Smith's  History  of  New  York. 

Leonidas. 

View  of  the  Universe. 

Lex  Mercatoria. 

Millot's  History  of  France. 

Memoirs  of  the  House  of  Brandenburgh. 

Review  of  the  characters  of  the  principal  Nations  of 

Europe. 

Review  of  Europe. 
History  of  Prussia. 


A  PICKED-UP  EDUCATION  23 

History  of  France. 

Lassel's  Voyage  through  Italy. 

Robinson's  Charles  V. 

Present  State  of  Europe. 

Grecian  History. 

Baretti's  Travels. 

Bacon's  Essays. 

Philosophical  Transactions. 

Hobbes'  Dialogues. 

Plutarch's  Morals. 

Cicero's  Morals. 

Orations — Demosthenes. 

Cudworth's  Intellectual  System. 

Entick's  History  of  the  late  War. 

European  Settlements  in  America. 

Ralt's  Dictionary  of  Trade  and  Commerce. 

Winn's  History  of  America. 

Montaigne's  Essays. 

Hamilton's  military  career  interrupted  but  did 
not  suspend  his  studies.  He  resumed  them  when 
ever  he  had  any  spare  time,  and  in  this  way  he 
turned  to  good  account  the  long  spells  of  leisure 
which  camp  life  often  allows.  It  will  be  seen  later 
that  during  military  service  he  found  time  to  develop 
the  ideas  which  eventually  he  applied  to  the  organ 
ization  of  the  government  and  to  the  management 
of  public  finance. 


CHAPTER  III 
THE  OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

IN  its  traditions  King's  College  was  stanchly  loyal 
ist;  the  faculty  deplored  the  movements  of  colonial 
sentiment,  and  conditions  became  so  uncongenial  to 
Doctor  Clossey  that  in  1774  he  resigned  and  went 
back  to  England.  President  Cooper  added  the 
weight  of  his  authority  to  some  solemn  warnings 
issued  by  conservative  leaders,  and  soon  had  his 
students  arrayed  against  him.  At  a  mass  meeting 
held  on  July  6,  1774,  in  what  is  now  known  as  City 
Hall  Park,  to  stir  up  New  York  opinion  in  favor  of 
joint  action  with  the  other  colonies  against  British 
dealings  with  Massachusetts,  Hamilton,  then  only 
seventeen  years  old,  was  one  of  the  speakers.  Doubt 
less  the  opportunity  was  conferred  in  recognition  of 
the  presence  of  a  body  of  collegians  in  the  crowd, 
and  as  a  means  of  enlisting  their  support,  but  he 
spoke  with  a  power  that  made  a  distinct  impression. 
At  this  period  he  began  to  write  for  Holt's  Journal, 
and  his  criticisms  of  British  policy  in  its  columns 
attracted  the  notice  of  leading  men.  There  is  a 
reference  to  them  in  John  Jay's  correspondence. 

The  chief  source  of  information  on  the  details  of 
Hamilton's  behavior  at  this  time  is  Robert  Troup, 
born  the  same  year  as  Hamilton,  his  classmate  in 

24 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  25 

college  and  his  comrade  in  arms.  He  ought,  there 
fore,  to  be  a  good  witness,  but  he  did  not  commit  his 
recollections  to  writing  until  after  Hamilton's  death, 
and  when  his  statements  are  collated  with  facts  of 
record  it  becomes  evident  that  they  are  not  always 
accurate.  Troup  supplied  his  recollections  to  sev 
eral  inquirers.  The  earliest  extant  statement  from 
him  is  preserved  in  the  collection  of  Hamilton  papers 
in  the  Library  of  Congress.  It  bears  date  March  22, 
1810,  and  is  addressed  to  the  Reverend  Doctor  John 
Mason,  who  attended  Hamilton  on  his  death-bed. 
In  it  Troup  says: 

The  General,  in  his  sentiments  on  government,  was 
originally  a  monarchist.  He  was  versed  in  the  history  of 
England,  and  well  acquainted  with  the  principles  of  the 
English  constitution,  which  he  admired.  Under  this  bias 
towards  the  British  monarchy,  he  took  a  journey  to  Bos 
ton,  soon  after  the  destruction  of  the  East  India  tea  by 
people  in  disguise  and  called  the  Mohawk  Indians,  when 
the  public  mind  was  in  a  state  of  violent  fermentation. 
Whilst  at  Boston  his  noble  and  generous  heart,  agitated 
by  what  he  saw  and  heard,  listed  him  on  the  side  of  Amer 
ica.  From  Boston  he  returned  to  New  York  a  warm 
Republican,  and  quite  an  enthusiast  for  resisting  the 
claims  of  the  British  Parliament;  and  his  enthusiasm  im 
pelled  him  first  to  advocate  the  cause  of  America  with 
his  pen  and  afterwards  to  vindicate  it  with  his  sword. 

This  account  of  a  Boston  trip  has  been  adopted 
and  enlarged  upon  by  subsequent  biographers,  but, 


26  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ail  things  considered,  it  is  probable  that  no  such 
trip  took  place,  and  that — writing  after  the  lapse  of 
thirty-six  years — Troup  has  confused  with  subse 
quent  events  the  mention  he  doubtless  heard  Hamil 
ton  make  of  visiting  Boston  when  he  first  landed  in 
America.  The  Boston  tea  riots  took  place  Decem 
ber  16,  1773,  at  a  period  when  Hamilton  was  in  his 
first  term  at  King's  College,  applying  himself  to  his 
studies  under  a  schedule  strictly  controlling  his  time. 
It  is  quite  unlikely  that  he  would  break  away  to 
make  the  then  long  and  tedious  trip  from  New  York 
to  Boston  unless  there  was  some  strong  occasion  for 
it,  and  no  such  occasion  is  known.  Troup  Js  account 
of  Hamilton's  motives  is  demonstrably  false,  al 
though  his  errors  are  such  as  naturally  occur  if  recol 
lections  are  not  carefully  checked  off  by  exact  rec 
ords.  Internal  evidence  shows  that  there  was  no 
such  change  in  Hamilton's  views  at  this  time  as  the 
account  assumes.  He  was  originally  a  monarchist, 
but  so  was  every  one  else.  Up  to  July  4,  1776,  the 
general  attitude  was  that  of  loyalty  to  the  crown, 
combined  with  denial  of  the  legislative  authority 
of  the  English  Parliament  over  the  colonies.  "The 
most  valid  reasons  can  be  assigned  for  our  allegiance 
to  the  King  of  Great  Britain/7  wrote  Hamilton  in 
his  pamphlet  The  Farmer  Refuted,  "but  not  one  of 
the  least  force,  or  plausibility,  for  our  subjection  to 
parliamentary  decrees."  In  the  same  pamphlet  he 
expressed  an  ardent  wish  that  the  differences  be- 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  27 

tween  "the  parent  state  and  the  colonies"  may  be 
reconciled,  and  he  declared:  "I  am  a  warm  advocate 
for  limited  monarchy,  and  an  unfeigned  well-wisher 
to  the  present  royal  family."  Just  such  views  were 
held  in  the  British  West  Indies  in  Hamilton's  child 
hood.  The  Reverend  Hugh  Knox,  Hamilton's  pas 
tor  and  teacher  at  St.  Croix,  was  in  full  sympathy 
with  them,  as  is  attested  by  his  letters  to  Hamilton. 
In  1777  Mr.  Knox  prepared  and  sent  to  the 
Continental  Congress  for  publication,  an  argument 
in  favor  of  the  American  cause  entitled,  An  Address 
to  America  by  a  Friend  in  a  Foreign  Government. 

A  statement  made  by  Hamilton  himself  is  cited 
as  evidence  that  he  experienced  a  change  of  heart 
through  a  trip  to  Boston.  In  the  "Advertisement" 
prefaced  to  The  Farmer  Refuted  he  remarked  that  it 
is  a  fair  query,  How  can  he  be  sure  that  his  views  are 
not  the  result  of  prejudice?  and  he  answers:  "Be 
cause  he  remembers  the  time,  when  he  had  strong 
prejudices  on  the  side  he  now  opposes.  His  change 
of  sentiment  (he  firmly  believes)  proceeded  from  the 
superior  force  of  the  arguments  in  favor  of  the 
American  claims."  The  style  of  this  utterance  is 
merely  that  of  the  exordium,  an  introduction  meant 
to  prepare  the  reader's  mind  for  the  statement  and 
argument  that  follow.  Hamilton  was  simply  con 
forming  to  a  rhetorical  pattern  then  taught  in  the 
schools.  The  language  used  does  not  point  to 
ideas  recently  caught  up,  but  rather  to  those  of 


28  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

gradual  development.  It  was  such  as  one  would 
use  who  had  inherited  strong  loyalist  prejudices, 
and  had  had  to  surrender  them  under  the  instruc 
tions  of  experience,  and  this  might  well  have  been 
Hamilton's  West  Indian  experience.  People  do  not 
speak  of  "remembering  a  time"  when  referring  to  a 
recent  event,  such  as  that  Boston  trip  would  have 
been  had  it  taken  place. 

The  internal  evidence  supplied  by  Hamilton's 
writings  demonstrates  that  he  did  not  write  in  any 
spirit  of  affection  for  New  England.  At  that  time 
New  England  was  not  in  high  repute  with  its  neigh 
bors.  Hamilton  took  care  to  distinguish  between 
New  England  behavior  and  the  nature  of  the  consti 
tutional  issues.  He  does  not  express  approval  of 
the  Boston  tea  riots,  but  he  complains  that,  "instead 
of  trying  to  discover  the  perpetrators,  and  commenc 
ing  a  legal  prosecution  against  them,  the  Parliament 
of  Great  Britain  interfered  in  an  unprecedented 
manner,  and  inflicted  a  punishment  upon  a  whole 
province."  He  argues  that  it  is  not  to  be  supposed 
that  the  colonies  were  acting  merely  out  of  sympathy 
with  Massachusetts,  for  "had  the  rest  of  America 
passively  looked  on,  while  a  sister  colony  was  sub 
jugated,  the  same  fate  would  gradually  have  over 
taken  all."  It  was  the  habit  of  Tory  pamphlet 
eers  to  cite  New  England  traits  and  happenings  to 
the  discredit  of  that  section,  and  it  is  noticeable 
that  Hamilton  does  not  attempt  to  refute  such 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  29 

charges  but  simply  avoids  them  as  being  beside  the 
point.  His  argument  is  that  all  the  colonies  have  a 
common  interest  in  defending  charter  rights  against 
aggression.  "Hence,  while  our  ears  are  stunned 
with  the  dismal  sound  of  New  England's  republican 
ism,  bigotry,  and  intolerance,  it  behooves  us  to  be 
on  our  guard." 

To  view  Hamilton's  literary  activities  in  their 
proper  setting,  it  should  not  be  supposed  that  pro 
ducing  a  political  pamphlet  was  then  any  extraor 
dinary  performance.  In  the  eighteenth  century  it 
rained  pamphlets  whenever  there  was  a  political 
storm.  The  newspaper  press  had  begun  to  be  a 
medium  for  the  expression  of  public  opinion;  it  was 
not  yet  an  organ  of  public  opinion.  The  traditional 
view  was  that  it  was  a  gross  indecency  for  news 
papers  to  indulge  in  political  comment,  but  the  Rev 
olutionary  movement  suppressed  such  scruples,  and 
communications  on  public  affairs  from  Cato,  Camil- 
lus,  Decius,  Senex,  Agricola,  and  such-like  classical 
worthies  frequently  appeared  in  the  newspapers. 
That  would  do  for  short  pieces,  but  when  an  argu 
ment  was  drawn  out  to  any  length  the  pamphlet  was 
the  ordinary  recourse.  It  was  the  fashion  of  the 
times  either  to  figure  as  one  of  the  great  men  of  an 
tiquity  or  else  to  speak  as  a  rural  sage.  The  cele 
brated  Farmer's  Letters  of  John  Dickinson  in  1768 
were  so  called  because  they  purported  to  come  from 
"a  farmer"  who  had  "received  a  liberal  education" 


30  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

and  was  accustomed  to  spending  much  of  his  time 
in  a  library  which  he  thought  "the  most  valuable 
part  of  his  small  estate."  Hence  he  had  acquired 
a  greater  knowledge  of  history,  law,  and  political 
institutions  than  is  usually  attained  by  men  of  his 
class;  and  therefore  he  felt  moved  to  offer  his 
thoughts  upon  the  situation.  So,  too,  when  the 
Reverend  Doctor  Seabury  produced  his  pamphlet, 
Free  Thoughts  on  the  Proceedings  of  the  Continental 
Congress,  he  signed  it  "  A  Westchester  Farmer."  In 
reply  Hamilton  produced  a  pamphlet  in  December, 
1774,  entitled  A  Full  Vindication  of  the  Measures  of 
Congress  from  the  Calumnies  of  Their  Enemies.  Doc 
tor  Seabury  rejoined  in  a  pamphlet  entitled  Congress 
Canvassed  by  a  Westchester  Farmer.  Hamilton  re 
plied  in  a  pamphlet  entitled  The  Farmer  Refuted  ;  or, 
a  More  Comprehensive  and  Impartial  View  of  the 
Disputes  Between  Great  Britain  and  the  Colonies,  In 
tended  as  a  Further  Vindication  of  the  Congress. 

In  reading  these  pamphlets,  the  one  produced 
before  Hamilton  was  eighteen,  the  other  a  little 
after,  one  is  not  at  all  surprised  that  Doctor  Cooper 
found  it  hard  to  believe  that  such  a  youth  could  have 
produced  such  "well-reasoned  and  cogent  political 
discussions."  That  phrase  exactly  characterized 
them.  Not  only  do  they  make  a  remarkable  exhibi 
tion  of  precocious  ability,  but,  on  making  no  allow 
ance  for  the  youth  of  the  author,  they  stand  in  the 
first  rank  of  the  political  pamphlets  of  the  Revolu- 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  31 

tionary  period.  The  Full  Vindication  is  about  14,- 
000  words  in  length.  There  is  more  strut  in  the 
style  than  was  characteristic  of  Hamilton  later  on, 
but  that  is  the  only  mark  of  juvenility  in  the  pro 
duction.  The  deep  analysis  and  the  logical  coher 
ence  that  are  the  specific  traits  of  Hamilton's  state 
papers  are  well  marked  in  these  products  of  his 
youth.  What  could  go  straighter  to  the  mark  than 
this,  in  rejoinder  to  comment  on  so  much  fuss  about 
a  trifling  impost  ?  "They  endeavor  to  persuade  us," 
he  said,  ".  .  .  that  our  contest  with  Britain  is 
founded  entirely  upon  the  petty  duty  of  three  pence 
per  pound  on  East  India  tea;  whereas  the  whole 
world  knows  it  is  built  upon  this  interesting  question, 
whether  the  inhabitants  of  Great  Britain  have  a 
right  to  dispose  of  the  lives  and  properties  of  the 
inhabitants  of  America,  or  not."  Reviewing  the 
failure  of  remonstrance  and  petition,  he  pointed  out 
that  all  that  was  left  was  a  choice  between  non 
importation  and  armed  resistance.  At  that  time 
Congress  recommended  non-importation.  The  aim 
of  Hamilton's  argument  was  to  justify  the  measures 
of  Congress,  and  he  set  systematically  to  work  to 
show  first  that  that  policy  was  reconcilable  with  the 
strictest  maxims  of  justice.  Next  he  proceeded  to 
examine  whether  it  had  also  the  sanction  of  sound 
policy.  "To  render  it  agreeable  to  good  policy, 
three  things  are  requisite.  First,  that  the  necessity 
of  the  times  requires  it;  secondly,  that  it  be  not  the 


32  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

probable  source  of  greater  evils  than  those  it  pretends 
to  remedy;  and,  lastly,  that  it  have  a  probability  of 
success."  He  drew  out  the  argument  under  each  of 
these  three  heads  with  an  amount  of  information 
and  with  a  soberness  of  estimate  that  are  certainly 
marvellous  in  one  of  his  years.  The  bombast  so 
natural  to  youth  on  fire  with  patriotic  indignation  is 
quite  absent.  He  does  not  boast  of  American  great 
ness,  but  he  points  out  that,  since  Great  Britain 
could  not  send  out  a  large  army,  "our  superiority  in 
number  would  overbalance  our  inferiority  in  dis 
cipline.  It  would  be  a  hard,  if  not  impracticable 
task,  to  subjugate  us  by  force."  On  comparing  the 
anticipations  of  military  and  economic  conditions 
made  in  this  pamphlet  with  those  which  actually 
ensued,  it  must  be  credited  with  remarkable  pre 
science. 

The  succeeding  pamphlet,  The  Farmer  Refuted, 
was  a  still  more  elaborate  argument.  It  contained 
over  35,000  words,  and  as  originally  published  ran  to 
78  pages.  It  is  marred  by  some  of  the  smart  per 
sonal  allusions  that  inferior  disputants  are  apt  to  im 
port  into  controversy.  Comparing  his  opponent  to 
one  of  the  characters  in  Pope's  Dunciad,he  remarked: 
"'Pert  dullness'  seems  to  be  the  chief  characteristic 
of  your  genius  as  well  as  his."  Later  on  he  makes 
a  much  neater  stroke,  when,  after  citing  some  harsh 
terms  applied  to  himself  by  his  opponent,  he  ob 
served:  "  With  respect  to  abuse,  I  make  not  the  least 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  33 

doubt  but  every  reader  will  allow  you  to  surpass  me 
in  that/'  However  cleverly  such  gibes  may  be 
made,  they  are  the  cheapest  stuff  that  can  be  em 
ployed  in  controversy;  but  at  this  period  such  stuff 
was  used  profusely  by  those  who  did  not  have  Ham 
ilton's  excuse  of  youth.  In  the  main,  the  pamphlet 
is  a  solid  and  dignified  argument  resting  upon  his 
torical  and  economic  data  of  great  fulness  and  exact 
pertinence.  The  argument  is  devoted  to  stating,  de 
veloping,  and  proving  the  thesis  that  to  disclaim  the 
authority  of  the  British  Parliament  does  not  imply 
a  breach  of  allegiance  to  the  Crown.  This  was  the 
doctrine  with  which  colonial  resistance  to  imperial 
authority  began.  It  was  a  doctrine  which  admitted 
of  fighting  the  King's  troops  while  professing  loyalty 
to  the  King,  and  this,  of  course,  made  it  necessary 
to  draw  out  some  very  fine  distinctions.  Hamilton's 
pamphlet  is  as  good  a  sample  of  legal  ingenuity  in 
this  line  as  is  to  be  found  in  any  tract  of  the  times. 
In  addition  to  legal  acuteness,  the  pamphlet  is 
marked  by  observations  upon  the  economic  aspects 
of  the  struggle,  displaying  an  ability  to  think  pre 
cisely  and  correctly  upon  such  matters  which  doubt 
less  owed  something  to  Hamilton's  own  commercial 
experience.  In  contending  that  America  had  suffi 
cient  resources  to  provide  for  her  own  needs,  he  made 
a  declaration  that  was  prophetic  of  his  own  states 
manship.  "In  such  a  country  as  this,"  he  said, 
"there  can  be  no  great  difficulty  in  finding  business 


34  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

for  all  its  inhabitants.  Those  obstacles  which,  to 
the  eye  of  timidity  or  disaffection  seem  like  Alps, 
would,  to  the  hand  of  resolution  and  perseverance, 
become  mere  hillocks." 

Not  only  his  writings  but  also  his  conduct  at  this 
period  shows  that  this  youth  of  eighteen  was  as 
remarkable  for  the  sobriety  as  for  the  power  of  his 
intelligence.  It  is  characteristic  of  times  of  excite 
ment  that  disorderly  outbreaks  of  popular  sentiment 
receive  special  indulgence.  Riots  become  patriotic 
demonstrations;  outrages  upon  persons  and  prop 
erty  become  evidences  of  zealous  devotion  to  the 
cause.  At  the  same  time  that  Hamilton  was  active 
in  measures  for  organized  resistance  to  British 
policy  he  was  quite  as  active  in  opposing  the  rowdy 
ism  that  attached  itself  to  the  movement.  Accord 
ing  to  Troup,  Hamilton  intervened  to  save  Doctor 
Cooper  from  attack  by  a  mob.  The  story  goes  that 
as  the  mob  approached  Cooper's  residence  Hamilton 
and  Troup  ascended  the  steps,  and  Hamilton  made 
a  speech  to  the  crowd  "on  the  excessive  impropriety 
of  their  conduct  and  the  disgrace  they  were  bringing 
on  the  cause  of  liberty,  of  which  they  professed  to 
be  the  champions."  Doctor  Cooper,  seeing  Hamil 
ton  from  an  upper  window,  and  not  being  able  to 
hear  what  he  was  saying,  mistook  his  purpose,  and 
shouted  to  the  mob:  " Don't  listen  to  him,  gentle 
men;  he  is  crazy."  The  delay  occasioned  by  Ham- 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  35 

ilton's  resolute  stand  enabled  Doctor  Cooper  to 
make  his  escape. 

That  on  some  occasion  Hamilton  did  speak  and 
act  as  Troup  described  need  not  be  questioned.  It 
was  quite  in  keeping  with  his  character.  But  that 
it  had  the  decisive  connection  with  Doctor  Cooper's 
escape  which  appears  in  the  traditional  narrative  is 
more  than  doubtful.  J.  C.  Hamilton  makes  the  in 
cident  a  feature  of  the  commotion  which  filled  the 
city  as  a  result  of  the  shots  fired  by  the  man-of-war 
Asia,  wounding  several  persons  on  the  Battery. 
But  this  affair  occurred  on  August  23,  1775.  Ac 
cording  to  data  in  the  New  York  colonial  archives, 
the  mob  attack  which  drove  out  Doctor  Cooper  took 
place  on  the  night  of  May  10,  1775,  but  he  got  word 
of  the  approach  of  the  mob  from  a  former  pupil  and 
took  refuge  in  the  house  of  a  Mr.  Stuyvesant,  re 
maining  there  the  next  day  until  evening,  when  he 
took  refuge  with  Captain  James  Montague,  com 
manding  the  British  man-of-war  Kingfisher,  which 
vessel  conveyed  Doctor  Cooper  to  England.1  This 
account  is  corroborated  by  Doctor  Cooper's  verses, 
written  on  the  anniversary  of  his  escape,  published 
in  the  Gentleman's  Magazine  for  July,  1776.  In  it 
he  relates  how  he  was  roused  from  sleep  by  a 
"heaven-directed  youth"  and  warned  that  a  mob 

1  Documents  Relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of  New 
York,  vol.  VIII,  p.  297. 


36  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

was  approaching.  He  says  that  they  wrecked  his 
home,  but 

"Meanwhile,  along  the  sounding  shore, 
Where  Hudson's  waves  incessant  roar, 

I  take  my  weary  way; 
And  skirt  the  windings  of  the  tide, 
My  faithful  pupil  by  my  side, 
Nor  wish  the  approach  of  day." 

There  is  nothing  to  indicate  that  the  faithful 
pupil  who  aided  Doctor  Cooper's  escape  was  Ham 
ilton,  although  it  might  have  been.  But  there 
is  ample  evidence  that  he  condemned  and  opposed 
the  mob  spirit.  One  of  its  targets  was  the  printer, 
James  Rivington,  from  whose  press  Tory  pamphlets 
had  been  issued.  So,  -  too,  had  Whig  pamphlets, 
among  them  Hamilton's  own  productions;  but  Riv- 
ington  was -known  to  side  with  the  Tories,  and  his 
press  was  regarded  as  a  centre  of  Tory  influence. 
But  the  blow  did  not  fall  upon  him  from  his  own 
townsmen.  On  November  23,  1775,  a  company  of 
horsemen  from  Connecticut,  commanded  by  Israel 
Sears,  rode  into  town  declaring  that  they  had  come 
to  destroy  Rivington's  press.  It  is  related  that 
Hamilton  again  interposed,  and  was  so  indignant  at 
this  raid  from  another  province  that  he  even  ap 
pealed  to  the  people  to  resist  the  Connecticut  ma 
rauders  by  force.  The  mob,  however,  followed  the 
lead  of  the  raiders,  and  Rivington's  establishment 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  37 

was  wrecked  and  pillaged.  A  few  days  later  Hamil 
ton  wrote  a  long  letter  to  John  Jay,  then  a  member 
of  the  Continental  Congress,  which  gives  signal  evi 
dence  of  his  calm  statesmanship.  After  referring  to 
the  raid  on  Rivington's  press,  he  observed : 

In  times  of  such  commotion  as  the  present,  while  the 
passions  of  men  are  worked  up  to  an  uncommon  pitch 
there  is  great  danger  of  fatal  extremes.  The  same  state 
of  the  passions  which  fits  the  multitude,  who  have  not  a 
sufficient  stock  of  reason  and  knowledge  to  guide  them, 
for  opposition  to  tyranny  and  oppression,  very  naturally 
leads  them  to  a  contempt  and  disregard  of  all  authority. 
The  due  medium  is  hardly  to  be  found  among  the  more 
intelligent;  it  is  almost  impossible  among  the  unthinking 
populace.  When  the  minds  of  these  are  loosened  from 
their  attachment  to  ancient  establishments  and  courses, 
they  seem  to  grow  giddy  and  are  apt  more  or  less  to  run 
into  anarchy.  These  principles,  too  true  in  themselves, 
and  confirmed  to  me  both  by  reading  and  my  own  experi 
ence,  deserve  extremely  the  attention  of  those  who  have 
the  direction  of  public  affairs.  In  such  tempestuous 
times,  it  requires  the  greatest  skill  in  the  political  pilots 
to  keep  men  steady  and  within  proper  bounds.  .  .  . 

This  laying  down  of  general  principles  was  the 
preface  to  a  practical  recommendation,  which  was 
that  troops  should  be  stationed  hi  New  York,  both 
to  repress  Tories  and  to  preserve  order.  He  sug 
gested  that  they  might  be  "raised  in  Philadelphia, 
the  Jerseys,  or  any  province  except  New  England." 
Jay  communicated  Hamilton's  views  to  Nathaniel 


38  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Woodhull,  president  of  the  Provincial  Congress  of 
New  York,  with  some  comments  of  his  own  con 
demning  the  New  England  exploit. 

The  notion  that  the  forceful  arguments  produced 
by  Hamilton  at  this  period  were  improvisations  in 
spired  by  the  zeal  of  a  new  convert  may  be  dismissed 
as  unfounded.  Constitutional  views  so  mature  and 
so  well  documented  take  time  for  their  growth.  The 
issues  involved  had  been  before  Hamilton's  mind 
from  the  time  he  was  eight  years  old,  and  he  had 
long  been  gathering  information  upon  them.  But, 
even  so,  one  cannot  read  the  pamphlets  and  letters 
without  astonishment  that  a  youth  of  eighteen, 
actively  engaged  in  a  popular  movement  and  ex 
posed  to  all  of  its  excitements,  should  be  able  to 
keep  such  a  cool  head  and  to  display  such  a  com 
bination  of  energy  and  sagacity.  One  must  admit 
that  here  is  clear  evidence  of  genius,  an  outpouring 
of  power  and  capacity  beyond  anything  that  might 
be  expected  from  the  circumstances  of  the  case  or 
be  accounted  for  on  any  theory  of  heredity. 


CHAPTER  IV 
IN  THE  STATE  MILITIA 

IT  will  be  a  view  of  Hamilton's  position  at  this  period 
that  will  best  accord  with  known  facts,  if  we  regard 
the  distinction  now  usually  imputed  to  his  youthful 
activities  as  being  reflected  upon  them  by  his  sub 
sequent  fame.  He  had  certainly  distinguished  him 
self  by  his  pamphlets,  in  the  opinion  of  competent 
judges,  but  that  did  not  constitute  popular  distinc 
tion.  The  force  of  argument  and  the  dignity  of 
style  that  mark  those  productions  are  better  calcu 
lated  to  impress  those  who  think  than  those  who 
feel,  and  popularity  belongs  to  those  who  can  appeal 
most  effectively  to  the  feeling  of  the  hour.  The 
bulk  of  the  literary  output  of  the  times  consisted  of 
sarcastic  poems,  personal  quips,  scurrilous  tirades, 
burlesques,  and  facetiae.  Probably  few  people  in 
turbulent  New  York  at  that  time  heard  of  Hamil 
ton's  pamphlets.  They  were  known  and  admired  in 
a  restricted  circle,  but  that  circle  included  men  of 
leadership  and  influence,  whose  good  opinion  was 
valuable.  Besides  the  two  pamphlets  he  wrote  in 
reply  to  Doctor  Seabury,  he  also  produced  a  pam 
phlet  in  1775,  entitled  Remarks  on  the  Quebec  Bill, 
which  is  shorter  than  its  predecessors  and  is  inferior 

39 


40  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

to  them  in  quality.  It  is  plainly  an  appeal  to 
Protestant  bigotry.  It  discusses  the  policy  of  the 
British  Government  in  Canada  in  support  of  a  con 
tention  that  "arbitrary  power,  and  its  great  engine, 
the  Popish  religion,  are,  to  all  intents  and  purposes, 
established  in  that  province." 

According  to  Troup's  reminiscences,  Hamilton. 
Troup,  and  other  students  formed  a  military  com 
pany  in  1775,  known  as  "  Hearts  of  Oak."  It  was 
drilled  and  instructed  by  Major  Fleming,  who  had 
been  an  adjutant  in  the  British  Army.  It  has  been 
assumed  on  the  strength  of  Troup's  recollections 
that  the  Hearts  of  Oak  participated  in  the  removal 
of  the  cannon  from  the  Battery  in  the  course  of 
which  the  British  man-of-war  Asia  fired  upon  the 
crowd.  Troup  relates  that  during  this  bombard 
ment  "Hamilton,  who  was  aiding  in  the  removal  of 
the  cannon,  exhibited  the  greatest  unconcern,  al 
though  one  of  his  companions  was  killed  by  his 
side."  It  is  entirely  probable  that  the  collegians 
were  in  the  crowd  at  the  Battery,  and  that  they 
lent  a  hand  to  the  efforts  of  the  troops  to  remove 
the  cannon;  but  contemporaneous  chronicles  make 
no  mention  of  the  participation  of  the  Hearts  of 
Oak  in  that  affair.  There  were  twenty-one  can 
non  posted  on  the  Battery,  and  the  order  for  their 
removal  was  issued  by  the  Provincial  Congress  of 
New  York,  that  they  might  be  transferred  to  forts 
then  ordered  to  be  constructed  in  the  Highlands  of 


IN  THE  STATE   MILITIA  41 

the  Hudson.  Captain  John  Lamb,  in  command  of 
a  company  of  artillery,  assisted  by  a  detachment  of 
infantry  from  Colonel  John  Lasher's  battalion,  per 
formed  this  service,  in  the  course  of  which  shots 
were  fired  from  the  shore  against  a  barge  belonging 
to  the  Asia,  killing  one  of  her  crew.  The  Asia  retali 
ated  by  a  bombardment  that  wounded  three  persons 
in  the  crowd  and  damaged  neighboring  property,  but 
killed  nobody.  This  took  place  on  August  23,  1775. 
It  may  be  doubted  whether  the  Hearts  of  Oak  were 
then  in  existence.  Their  motto,  "Freedom  or 
Death,"  inscribed  on  the  hatbands  which  belonged 
to  their  uniform,  suggests  that  they  were  one  of  the 
numerous  volunteer  military  companies  that  sprang 
up  after  Montgomery  used  that  watchword  in  the 
battle  of  Quebec,  in  which  he  was  killed,  December 
31,  1775.  A  return  of  the  militia  companies  in  New 
York  City  made  in  August,  1775,  does  not  mention 
the  Hearts  of  Oak,  but  a  return  in  1776  mentions  a 
corps  of  that  name  commanded  by  Captain  John 
Berrian.1 

The  definitely  established  facts  indicate  that  while 
the  Continental  Congress  was  taking  the  first  steps 
in  armed  resistance  to  British  policy,  Hamilton  was 
assiduously  pursuing  his  studies,  civil  and  military. 
Custis's  Reminiscences,  written  in  his  old  age  and 

1  Documents  Relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  New  York,  vol. 
VIII,  p.  601 ;  Memoirs  of  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society,  vol.  Ill, 
p.  108. 


42  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

showing  marks  of  inaccuracy,  relates  that  at  one 
time  Hamilton  thought  of  returning  to  St.  Croix. 
Custis,  a  stepson  of  Washington  and  an  inmate  of 
his  household,  saw  and  heard  a  great  deal  of  Hamil 
ton,  and  is  not  likely  to  be  mistaken  as  to  the  bare 
fact,  although  the  melodramatic  setting  he  gives  it 
is  improbable.  That  such  a  notion  occurred  to 
Hamilton  harmonizes  with  other  facts  in  his  situa 
tion  at  this  period.  He  had  come  to  America  to 
get  a  college  education  with  funds  provided  by  his 
West  Indian  relatives  for  that  purpose.  After  the 
flight  of  Doctor  Cooper  and  under  the  distractions 
of  the  times  King's  College  began  to  break  up.  It 
may  well  have  occurred  to  Hamilton  whether  it  was 
not  his  duty  to  return  to  the  West  Indies  with  his 
remaining  funds.  He  decided  that  the  circum 
stances  warranted  a  conversion  of  his  funds  to  new 
uses,  and  he  applied  for  the  command  of  a  company 
of  artillery  which  was  included  in  the  list  of  forces 
authorized  by  the  New  York  Provincial  Convention; 
was  examined  as  to  his  fitness,  and  his  commission 
was  issued  March  14,  1776.  He  employed  the  last 
of  his  funds  in  recruiting  this  company.  On  April  6 
the  treasurer  of  King's  College  was  notified  by  a 
Committee  of  Safety  that  the  building  was  needed 
for  military  purposes.  The  college  library  and  other 
apparatus  were  then  deposited  in  the  City  Hall,  the 
remaining  students  were  dispersed,  and  the  college 
building  was  turned  into  an  army  hospital. 


IN  THE  STATE  MILITIA  43 

It  is  evident  that  Hamilton  was  already  regarded 
as  a  youth  of  military  promise,  for  Lord  Stirling, 
who  took  command  of  the  Continental  forces  in 
New  York  on 'March  6,  1776,  requested  Elias  Boudi- 
not  to  engage  Hamilton  for  him  as  a  member  of  his 
staff.  Boudinot  replied  that  "Mr.  Hamilton  had 
already  accepted  the  command  of  artillery,  and  was 
therefore  deprived  of  the  pleasure  of  attending  your 
Lordship's  person  as  brigade  major."  It  was  a 
marked  distinction  for  a  youth  of  nineteen,  but  not 
an  unusual  one  in  those  times  when  youths  of  edu 
cation  and  intelligence  were  much  in  demand  to 
supply  staff  service  to  the  numerous  militia  generals. 

Hamilton  applied  himself  with  characteristic 
thcughtfulness  and  diligence  to  drilling  and  exercis 
ing  his  company.  Custis  relates  that  in  the  sum 
mer  of  that  year  General  Greene  saw  him  drilling 
his  company  in  the  Fields  (now  City  Hall  Park)  and 
was  so  impressed  by  his  ability  that  he  made  his  ac 
quaintance,  invited  him  to  his  quarters,  and  formed 
such  an  opinion  of  him  that  eventually  he  introduced 
him  to  Washington,  with  recommendations  that 
bore  fruit  in  Hamilton's  appointment  to  Washing 
ton's  staff.  Hamilton's  correspondence  at  this  time 
attests  his  thoroughness  in  the  discharge  of  his  mili 
tary  duties.  Several  of  his  letters  to  the  Provincial 
Congress  are  preserved,  dealing  with  matters  per 
taining  to  the  discipline  and  equipment  of  his  com 
pany  with  intelligence  and  good  judgment.  The 


44  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

exact  and  cautious  character  of  his  observations  is 
well  illustrated  by  a  communication  in  August,  1776, 
in  which  he  recommends  one  of  his  sergeants  for  a 
commission,  remarking  that  "he  is  a  very  good  dis 
ciplinarian — possesses  the  advantage  of  having  seen 
a  good  deal  of  service  in  Germany,  has  a  tolerable 
share  of  common  sense,  and  will  not  disgrace  the 
rank  of  an  officer  and  gentleman."  The  sergeant 
so  recommended  got  his  commission  and  made  a 
good  officer. 

Hamilton's  artillery  company  was  among  the 
forces  with  which  Washington  tried  to  oppose  the 
British  attack  upon  New  York  in  August,  1776. 
Washington  had  a  total  force  of  28,500  officers  and 
men  with  which  to  oppose  Howe's  amny  of  over 
31,000.  The  American  Army  was  composed  of 
twenty-five  regiments,  recruited  by  order  of  the 
Continental  Congress,  and  therefore  the  lineal  pred 
ecessors  of  our  present  regular  army,  and  in  addi 
tion  there  were  forty-six  regiments  or  battalions 
of  State  militia.  The  militia  officers  had  not  the 
training  or  experience  to  look  properly  after  their 
men,  and  there  was  so  much  sickness  that  on  the 
day  of  the  battle  of  Long  Island  Washington  had 
only  about  19,000  effectives,  while  Howe  had  over 
24,000.  Among  Washington's  troops  uniforms  were 
the  exception,  and  most  of  the  soldiers  were  dressed 
in  citizens'  clothes.  For  arms  the  troops  had  old 
flintlocks,  fowling-pieces,  rifles,  and  some  good 


IN  THE  STATE   MILITIA  45 

English  muskets.  Lacking  discipline,  they  of  course 
also  lacked  cohesion. 

In  the  battle,  fought  on  August  27,  the  American 
troops  were  outflanked  and  defeated,  and  Lord  Stir 
ling  and  General  Sullivan,  on  whose  divisions  the 
brunt  of  the  attack  fell,  were  both  captured  by  the 
British,  who  took  prisoner  in  all  ninety-one  Ameri 
can  officers.  Washington,  who  had  remained  in 
New  York,  uncertain  where  the  attack  would  fall, 
hurried  forward  reinforcements  as  soon  as  news 
arrived  of  the  British  movements,  and  this  brought 
Hamilton's  company  into  the  action.  The  Ameri 
can  lines  were  crumpled  up  so  that  it  was  not  possi 
ble  to  make  a  stand,  but  it  appears  that  Hamilton's 
company  acted  as  a  rear-guard  in  the  retreat,  in  the 
course  of  which  he  lost  a  field-piece  and  his  baggage. 
One  of  Hamilton's  chums  fared  even  worse  on  that 
day.  Lieutenant  Robert  Troup  was  one  of  a  special 
patrol  of  five  commissioned  officers  detailed  to  watch 
Jamaica  Pass.  Their  watch  was  so  poor  that  the 
whole  party  was  surprised  and  captured,  and  thus 
the  way  was  opened  for  the  flanking  movement  that 
struck  the  American  line  unawares  and  produced  a 
rout  and  a  disorderly  retreat.1 

Washington,  who  possessed  a  mind  that  no  calam 
ity  could  stun  and  an  energy  of  character  that  no 
circumstances  could  paralyze,  exerted  himself  with 

1See  Memoirs  of  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society,  vol.  Ill, 
p.  177. 


46  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

considerable  success  in  rearranging  his  forces  on  new 
lines  at  Brooklyn.  But  some  British  men-of-war 
made  their  way  into  Flushing  Bay  and  the  Ameri 
can  rear  was  exposed  to  possibilities  of  attack  that 
made  retreat  advisable.  This  was  so  skilfully  man 
aged  that  the  army  was  drawn  back  to  New  York 
without  loss.  Washington's  situation  was  still  very 
perilous,  as  his  army  was  beginning  to  melt  by  the 
desertion  of  militia,  who  began  to  leave  by  groups 
and  even  whole  companies.  Scott's  brigade,  to 
which  Hamilton's  company  was  attached,  was  now 
posted  on  the  East  River  front.  .Washington  re 
garded  the  position  as  defensible  if  he  had  troops 
that  could  be  depended  upon.  Writing  to  Congress 
on  September  2,  he  said:  "Till  of  late  I  had  no  doubt 
in  my  own  mind  of  defending  this  place,  nor  should 
I  have  yet,  if  the  men  would  do  their  duty,  but  this 
I  despair  of.  It  is  painful,  and  extremely  grating  to 
me,  to  give  such  unfavorable  accounts,  but  it  would 
be  criminal  to  conceal  the  truth  at  so  critical  a  junc 
ture."  His  best  generals  strongly  advised  evacua 
tion  of  the  city,  and  on  September  12  the  removal 
of  the  army  to  lines  on  Harlem  Heights  was  begun, 
but  was  not  completed  by  the  15th,  when  the  British 
occupied  the  city.  On  that  day  Scott's  brigade  was 
still  on  the  East  River  front,  about  the  foot  of  what 
is  now  Fifteenth  Street.  A  force  of  British,  under 
cover  of  fire  from  five  British  frigates,  made  a  land 
ing  in  Kip's  Bay,  where  some  militia  regiments  were 


IN  THE  STATE  MILITIA  47 

posted.  They  were  seized  with  panic  and  ran  away 
in  a  manner  which  Washington  described  as  "dis 
graceful  and  dastardly. "  Scott's  brigade  had  to 
make  an  immediate  retreat,  or  else  it  might  have 
been  surrounded  and  captured.  General  Putnam, 
to  whose  division  the  brigade  belonged,  was  in  great 
difficulties,  and  the  escape  of  this  division  is  attrib 
uted  largely  to  the  efforts  of  Aaron  Burr,  who  was 
one  of  Putnam's  aides.  Burr,  who  knew  the  ground 
thoroughly,  led  it  over  to  the  Bloomingdale  road, 
and  after  a  circuitous  march  of  about  twelve  miles 
the  division  reached  Harlem  Heights  with  little  loss, 
to  the  joy  of  the  other  brigades,  who  had  given  it 
up  for  lost. 

It  was  on  Harlem  Heights  that  Hamilton  first  met 
Washington,  according  to  J.  C.  Hamilton,  who  re 
lates  that,  "on  the  inspection  of  an  earthwork  he 
was  throwing  up,  the  commander-in-chief  entered 
into  conversation  with  him,  invited  him  to  his  tent, 
and  received  an  impression  of  his  military  talent." 
This  account  does  not  tally  well  with  the  account 
given  by  Custis  that  Hamilton  was  recommended 
to  Washington  by  General  Greene.  It  is  probably 
an  embellished  version  of  the  fact  that  Washington 
met  and  talked  with  Hamilton  in  the  course  of  his 
arrangements  for  fortifying  his  lines.  In  the  circum 
stances  that  was  almost  inevitable.  But  it  is  alto 
gether  unlikely  that  Washington  had  any  time  for 
general  conversation  when  he  was  working  under 


48  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

great  pressure  to  rearrange  his  disheartened  and 
demoralized  forces.  It  was  at  this  juncture  that 
Washington  made  one  of  the  strokes  characteristic 
of  his  generalship.  The  British  by  this  time  thought 
the  Colonials  such  easy  marks  that  a  force  of  about 
300  had  the  temerity  to  push  up  to  the  lines,  sound 
ing  bugle-calls  of  the  sort  used  at  a  fox-hunt.  Wash 
ington,  who  had  a  quick  military  eye,  saw  a  chance 
to  hearten  his  troops.  Drawing  the  attention  of  the 
British  by  some  weak  skirmishing  on  their  front,  he 
sent  out  a  flanking  expedition  which  came  near  bag 
ging  them.  As  it  was,  they  had  to  run  and,  rein 
forcements  being  thrown  in  by  both  sides,  there  was 
considerable  of  a  battle,  in  which  the  British  were 
beaten  and  had  to  retreat.  This  engagement,  in 
which  not  more  than  1,800  took  part  on  the  Ameri 
can  side,  became  known  as  the  battle  of  Harlem 
Heights.  It  was  a  smart  affair,  and  Washington 
wrote  that  it  "inspirited  our  troops  prodigiously. " 
It  is  not  likely  that  Hamilton  took  any  part  in 
this  affair,  as  the  brigade  to  which  he  belonged  was 
not  engaged.  His  work  on  Harlem  Heights  con 
tinued  to  be  that  in  which  Washington  found  him 
engaged,  the  fortification  of  his  part  of  the  line  and 
careful  preparation  against  possible  attack.  But  no 
attack  took  place.  Howe,  who  did  his  work  leisurely 
but  with  professional  competency,  in  a  few  weeks 
flanked  Washington  out  of  the  Harlem  Heights  posi 
tion  by  sending  a  force  through  Hell  Gate  to  make 


IN  THE  STATE   MILITIA  49 

a  landing  in  Westchester  County,  threatening  Wash 
ington's  communications.  Washington  therefore 
moved  to  a  new  position,  his  right  flank  resting  on 
the  Bronx  and  his  left  flank  on  Chatterton's  Hill. 
On  October  28  the  British  made  an  attack,  and,  when 
it  appeared  that  its  chief  weight  would  fall  on  the  left 
flank,  Captain  Alexander  Hamilton's  two-gun  bat 
tery  was  among  the  reinforcements  sent  to  Chatter- 
ton's  Hill.  The  attacking  force,  numbering  about 
4,000  men,  were  met  by  a  fire  before  which  they  re 
coiled,  but  on  moving  up  again  they  extended  more 
to  the  left  of  the  American  position.  The  militia 
stationed  there  gave  way,  compelling  a  general  re 
treat  on  the  American  side. 

This  affair  on  Chatterton's  Hill  is  known  as  the 
battle  of  White  Plains.  On  the  American  side  not 
over  1,600  troops  were  engaged,  and  they  inflicted 
severer  losses  than  they  sustained,  but  the  effect 
was  to  cause  Washington  to  make  another  masterly 
retreat.  During  the  night  he  fell  back  to  the 
heights  of  North  Castle,  occupying  so  strong  a  posi 
tion  that  Howe  decided  not  to  attack.  According 
to  British  historians,  Howe  concluded  that  Wash 
ington  could  not  be  induced  to  risk  a  decisive  en 
gagement,  and  that  the  Americans  knew  the  coun 
try  too  well  to  be  cut  off,  so  he  desisted  from  pur 
suit  and  turned  to  other  operations,  which  were 
quite  successful.  On  November  16  he  attacked 
Fort  Washington,  on  the  Hudson,  and  Washington, 


50  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

who  watched  the  fighting  from  Fort  Lee,  had  the 
mortification  of  seeing  the  garrison  forced  to  sur 
render.  This  disaster  closed  the  campaign  in  the 
vicinity  of  New  York,  during  which  the  American 
Army  lost  most  of  its  artillery — 218  pieces  of  all 
calibre — while  329  officers  and  4,100  men  were 
taken  prisoner  by  the  British. 

Hamilton  passed  through  all  these  gloomy  experi 
ences,  and  he  and  his  little  battery  were  in  the  rem 
nant  of  the  American  Army  that  still  clung  to  Wash 
ington's  desperate  fortunes.  An  anecdote  obtained 
by  Washington  Irving  from  "a  veteran  officer  of  the 
Revolution"  gives  a  glimpse  of  Hamilton  in  this 
retreat.  Said  this  officer:  "I  noticed  a  youth,  a 
mere  stripling,  small,  slender,  almost  delicate  in 
frame,  marching  beside  a  piece  of  artillery,  with  a 
cocked  hat  pulled  down  over  his  eyes,  apparently  lost 
in  thought  with  his  hand  resting  on  the  cannon,  and 
every  now  and  then  patting  it  as  he  mused,  as  if  it 
were  a  favorite  horse,  or  a  pet  plaything." 

One  obtains  another  glimpse  of  Hamilton  during 
this  retreat  through  Custis's  Memoirs.  He  relates 
that  at  the  passage  of  the  Raritan,  near  New  Bruns 
wick,  Hamilton  attracted  the  notice  of  the  com- 
mander-in-chief,  who  while  posted  on  the  river 
bank,  and  contemplating  with  anxiety  the  passage 
of  the  troops,  was  charmed  by  the  brilliant  courage 
and  admirable  skill  displayed  by  a  young  officer  of 
artillery,  who  directed  a  battery  against  the  enemy's 


IN  THE  STATE  MILITIA  51 

advanced  columns  that  pressed  upon  the  Americans 
in  their  retreat  by  the  ford.  The  general  ordered 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Fitzgerald,  his  aide-de-camp,  to 
ascertain  who  this  young  officer  was,  and  bid  him 
repair  to  headquarters  at  the  first  halt  of  the  army. 
According  to  Custis,  who  was  so  situated  that  he 
might  have  received  the  information  from  Wash 
ington's  own  lips,  the  personal  regard  of  Washington 
for  Hamilton  dated  from  that  incident. 

From  New  Brunswick  the  American  troops  re 
treated  by  the  road  passing  through  Princeton. 
J,  C.  Hamilton  quotes  "a  friend "  as  saying:  "Well 
do  I  remember  the  day  when  Hamilton's  company 
marched  into  Princeton.  It  was  a  model  of  disci 
pline;  at  their  head  a  boy,  and  I  wondered  at  his 
youth;  but  what  was  my  surprise  when  struck  with 
his  slight  figure,  he  was  pointed  out  to  me  as  that 
Hamilton  of  whom  we  had  already  heard  so  much." 

In  the  course  of  this  campaign  Washington  ad 
hered  to  his  Fabian  tactics,  avoiding  a  general  en 
gagement  and  watchful  of  opportunity  to  make 
sudden  counter-strokes.  His  great  exploit  was  the 
surprise  of  the  Hessians  at  Trenton,  during  their 
Christmas  festivities,  followed  up  by  the  battle  of 
Princeton.  Hamilton  took  part  in  these  affairs,  in 
which  his  company  sustained  losses  reducing  its 
strength  to  about  thirty  men.  This  force  was  among 
the  fragments  of  the  original  army  which  still  re 
mained  with  Washington  when  he  established  his 


52  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

winter  quarters  at  Morristown,  early  in  January, 
1777.  During  that  winter  Hamilton  became  one  of 
Washington's  secretaries,  and  on  March  1,  1777,  he 
was  formally  appointed  an  aide-de-camp,  with  the 
rank  of  lieutenant-colonel.  Hamilton  sent  notice  of 
this  event  to  the  New  York  Convention,  advising 
them  of  the  appointment,  and  asking  instructions 
as  to  what  should  be  done  with  the  remnant  of  the 
company,  suggesting  that  "the  Continent  will  read 
ily  take  it  off  your  hands."  The  Convention  replied 
that  "it  is  determined  to  permit  that  company  to 
join  the  Continental  Army,  for  which  you  will  take 
the  necessary  steps."  This  event  closed  Hamilton's 
service  in  the  State  militia  and  marked  the  beginning 
of  his  distinctly  national  career. 

In  taking  up  arms  in  the  service  of  the  American 
colonies  Hamilton  did  not  sever  his  relations  with 
his  West  Indian  relatives  and  friends.  On  February 
14,  1777,  he  wrote  to  the  Reverend  Hugh  Knox,  at 
St.  Croix,  what  Knox  characterized  as  a  "very  cir 
cumstantial  and  satisfactory  letter."  It  appears 
from  Knox's  reply,  which  has  been  preserved,  that 
in  this  letter  Hamilton  mentioned  his  appointment 
on  Washington's  staff.  Knox  wrote  that  Hamilton's 
account  of  his  services  and  advancement  "has  given 
high  satisfaction  to  all  friends  here."  The  good 
clergyman  was  himself  overjoyed.  "  Mark  this ! "  he 
wrote;  "you  must  be  the  Annalist  and  Biographer, 


IN  THE  STATE  MILITIA  53 

as  well  as  the  Aide-de-Camp,  of  General  Washington 
and  the  Historiographer  of  the  AMERICAN  WAR!" 
Mr.  Knox  pressed  this  point,  saying:  "This  may  be 
a  new  and  strange  thought  to  you :  but  if  you  survive 
the  present  trouble,  /  aver — few  men  will  be  as  well 
qualified  to  write  the  history  of  the  present  glorious 
struggle.  God  only  knows  how  it  will  terminate. 
But  however  that  may  be,  it  will  be  a  most  inter 
esting  story." 

This  letter,  from  the  clergyman  under  whom  Ham 
ilton  began  his  studies,  is  important  in  several  ways. 
It  testifies  to  the  high  opinion  of  Hamilton's  abilities 
among  those  who  had  known  him  from  his  infancy. 
It  shows  that  the  sympathy  of  the  West  Indian  set 
to  which  Hamilton  belonged  was  strongly  on  the 
side  that  Hamilton  had  espoused,  so  that  Hamilton's 
action  was  no  severance  of  old  ties.  Mr.  Knox  ex 
pressed  the  hope  that  he  would  "  justify  the  choice, 
and  merit  the  approbation,  of  the  great  and  good 
General  Washington — a  name  which  will  shine  with 
distinguished  lustre  in  the  annals  of  history — a  name 
dear  to  the  friends  of  the  Liberties  of  Mankind!" 
When  it  is  considered  that  Hamilton's  letter  must 
have  borne  a  tale  of  disaster,  it  is  evident  that  the 
clergyman's  ardor  hi  the  American  cause  must  have 
been  deep  and  strong  to  express  itself  in  such  a  way 
at  such  a  time.  It  is  a  great  pity  that  Hamilton's 
letter  to  which  this  was  a  reply  has  never  been 


54  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

recovered.  It  would  doubtless  have  supplied  an 
exact  account  of  Hamilton's  activities  in  America 
up  to  the  beginning  of  his  personal  association  with 
General  Washington. 


CHAPTER  V 
AT  HEADQUARTERS 

HAMILTON'S  reports  made  in  closing  his  connec 
tion  with  the  State  militia  mention  sickness  as  hav 
ing  caused  delay  in  submitting  them.  A  letter  from 
a  Provincial  committee,  dated  April  2,  1777,  says 
that  they  are  sorry  to  hear  of  his  "indisposition." 
The  letter  from  Mr.  Knox  of  April  21,  1777,  con 
gratulates  Hamilton  upon  his  "recovery  from  a  long 
and  dangerous  illness."  It  also  appears  that  Gen 
eral  Washington  was  ill  about  the  same  time.  A 
letter  of  Gouverneur  Morris,  March  26,  1777,  refers 
to  the  "universal  joy"  it  caused  "to  hear  of  the 
General's  recovery." 

When  Hamilton  was  appointed  aide-de-camp  he 
had  just  turned  twenty,  while  Washington  had  just 
turned  forty-five.  The  physical  contrast  between 
them  was  very  marked.  Washington  was  six  feet 
two  inches  tall,  with  unusually  large  limbs. 
Hamilton  was  only  about  five  feet  seven,  just 
the  height  of  Napoleon  Bonaparte.  His  hair — a 
lock  of  which  I  have  examined — was  sandy  red, 
and  authentic  accounts  leave  no  doubt  that  his 
complexion  was  of  the  ruddy  Scottish  type.  Wil 
liam  Sullivan,  a  Massachusetts  Federalist  lawyer, 

55 


56  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

politician,  and  historian,  gave  this  account  of  Ham 
ilton's  appearance  as  a  guest  at  a  dinner-party  in 
December,  1795:  "He  was  under  middle  size,  thin 
in  person,  but  remarkably  erect  and  dignified  in 
his  deportment.  His  hair  was  turned  back  from 
his  forehead,  powdered  and  collected  in  a  club  be 
hind.  His  complexion  was  exceedingly  fair,  and 
varying  from  this  only  by  the  almost  feminine ; 
rosiness  of  his  cheeks.  His  might  be  considered, 
as  to  figure  and  color,  an  uncommonly  handsome 
face.  When  at  rest,  it  had  a  rather  severe  and 
thoughtful  expression;  but  when  engaged  in  con 
versation,  it  easily  assumed  an  attractive  smile. 
He  was  dressed  in  a  blue  coat  with  bright  buttons; 
the  skirts  of  his  coat  were  unusually  long.  He  won; 
a  white  waistcoat,  black  silk  small  clothes,  white  silk 
stockings.  The  gentleman,  who  received  him  as  a 
guest,  introduced  him  to  such  of  the  company  as 
were  strangers  to  him;  to  each  he  made  a  formal 
bow,  bending  very  low,  the  ceremony  of  shaking 
hands  not  being  observed. " 

This  description  of  Hamilton's  looks  and  bearing 
at  the  age  of  thirty-eight  will  do  quite  well  for  him 
at  the  age  of  twenty,  for  his  sense  of  personal  dignity 
was  as  strongly  marked  then. 

Timothy  Pickering,  who  was  Washington's  adju 
tant-general  in  1777,  said  that  Washington  was  then 
unhandy  with  his  pen.  "When  I  first  became  ac 
quainted  with  the  General,"  Pickering  related,  "his 


AT  HEADQUARTERS  57 

writing  was  defective  in  grammar,  and  even  in  spell 
ing,  owing  to  the  insufficiency  of  his  early  education; 
of  which,  however,  he  gradually  got  the  better  in 
the  subsequent  years  of  his  life,  by  the  official  peru 
sal  of  some  excellent  models,  particularly  those  of 
Hamilton;  by  writing  with  care  and  patient  atten 
tion;  and  reading  numerous,  indeed  multitudes  of, 
letters  to  and  from  his  friends  and  correspondents/' 
The  year  in  which  Pickering  first  became  ac 
quainted  with  Washington  was  the  same  year  in 
which  Hamilton  was  appointed  aide-de-camp,  so  it 
exhibits  Washington  as  he  was  when  Hamilton's 
service  began.  Washington  had  difficulty  in  getting 
a  military  secretary  to  his  liking,  or  else  found  it 
hard  to  retain  an  aide-de-camp  assigned  to  that 
function.  The  duties  were  heavy  and  multifarious, 
for,  in  addition  to  directing  the  army  under  his  im 
mediate  command,  Washington  was  charged  with  a 
general  supervision  of  military  arrangements.  What 
government  there  was  was  an  improvised  thing 
without  proper  organs,  and  he  was  expected  to  act 
as  a  sort  of  secretary  of  war  without  means  for 
executing  that  office.  A  view  of  the  difficulties  into 
which  he  was  plunged  is  afforded  by  a  letter  of 
April  23,  1776,  from  Washington  to  Congress:  "I 
give  in  to  no  kind  of  amusement  myself,  and  con 
sequently  those  about  me  can  have  none,  but  are 
confined  from  morning  till  evening,  hearing  and 
answering  the  applications  and  letters  of  one  and 


58  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

another,  which  will  now,  I  expect,  receive  a  consid 
erable  addition,  as  the  business  of  the  northern  and 
eastern  departments,  if  I  continue  here,  must,  I 
suppose,  pass  through  my  hands.  If  these  gentle 
men  had  the  same  relaxation  from  duty  as  other 
officers  have  in  their  common  routine,  there  would 
not  be  so  much  in  it.  But  to  have  the  mind  always 
upon  the  stretch,  scarce  ever  unbent,  and  no  hours 
for  recreation,  makes  a  material  odds.  Knowing 
this,  and  at  the  same  time  how  inadequate  the  pay 
is,  I  can  scarce  find  inclination  to  impose  the  neces 
sary  duties  of  their  office  upon  them.7' 

From  the  account  Pickering  gives  of  the  battle  of 
the  Brandy  wine,  September  11,  1777,  it  appears  that 
Robert  H.  Harrison  of  Maryland  was  then  serving 
as  military  secretary,  although  Hamilton's  staff  ap 
pointment  took  effect  the  previous  March.  At  this 
time  Hamilton's  staff  duties  were  not  so  confining 
but  that  he  could  take  part  in  expeditions  of  a  skir 
mishing  character.  On  September  18  he  went  with 
a  small  party  of  horse  to  destroy  some  stocks  of 
flour  in  some  mills  on  the  Schuylkill,  which  the 
British  were  likely  to  seize.  Hamilton  took  the 
precaution  of  securing  a  flat-bottomed  boat  in  case 
a  sudden  retreat  should  be  necessary.  It  turned 
out  to  be  a  wise  arrangement,  as  the  British  were  at 
hand,  and  as  Hamilton  and  his  men  rowed  across 
the  river  they  were  fired  upon,  "by  which  means/' 
wrote  Hamilton,  "I  lost  my  horse — one  man  was 


AT  HEADQUARTERS  59 

killed  and  another  wounded."  That  Hamilton  kept 
his  wits  about  him  in  this  exciting  situation  is  shown 
by  the  fact  that  he  at  once  dispatched  a  message  to 
John  Hancock,  President  of  Congress,  saying:  "If 
Congress  have  not  left  Philadelphia  they  ought  to 
do  it  immediately  without  fail."  The  same  night 
he  sent  another  message  to  the  same  effect,  calling 
attention  to  the  advance  of  the  British,  and  remark 
ing:  "This  renders  the  situation  of  Congress  ex 
tremely  precarious,  if  they  are  not  on  their  guard." 
The  effect  of  this  warning,  in  which  Hamilton  acted 
on  his  own  judgment,  was  to  cause  Congress  to  ad 
journ  to  Lancaster,  about  sixty  miles  west  of  Phila 
delphia.  Hamilton  himself  went  to  Philadelphia 
to  bring  off  all  the  supplies  he  could  before  the  Brit 
ish  arrived,  and  on  the  22d  he  sent  another  report 
to  President  Hancock,  at  Lancaster,  saying  that 
"every  appearance  justified  the  supposition"  that 
the  enemy  was  about  to  cross  the  river  to  the  Phila 
delphia  side.  As  it  turned  out,  the  British  occupa 
tion  of  Philadelphia  took  place  on  September  26. 

The  indications  are  that  it  was  not  until  after  this 
affair  that  Hamilton  attained  the  position  of  inti 
macy  and  influence  with  Washington  he  certainly 
occupied  before  the  year  was  out.  Washington 
found  in  him  a  secretary  always  apt  and  ready, 
clear-headed  and  well  informed.  In  addition  to  his 
intellectual  qualifications,  Hamilton  possessed  an 
advantage  which  he  probably  owed  to  his  commer- 


60  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

cial  training.  His  handwriting  was  beautifully  dis 
tinct  and  legible.  His  original  papers  preserved  in 
the  Library  of  Congress  are,  in  sheer  mechanics,  on 
a  level  with  the  work  of  a  professional  engrossing 
clerk.  It  was  inevitable  that  having  found  such  a 
treasure  Washington  would  make  steady  use  of  it, 
and  it  is  evident  that  he  got  into  the  habit  of  trust 
ing  much  to  Hamilton's  ability  and  good  judgment. 

Custis  gives  an  intimate  account  of  scenes  at; 
headquarters.  Washington  was  attended  through 
out  the  war  by  his  body-servant,  Will  Lee,  a  stout, 
active  negro  who  was  a  famous  horseman.  Billy,  as 
everybody  called  him,  always  slept  in  call  of  his 
master.  It  was  Washington's  practice  to  turn  over 
in  his  mind  every  morning  the  business  to  be  at 
tended  to  during  the  day,  and  sometimes  he  would 
lie  on  his  couch  thinking  over  matters  after  his  aides 
had  been  dismissed  for  the  night.  When  dispatches 
arrived,  or  when  he  had  reached  some  conclusion 
requiring  immediate  action,  the  word  would  go  to 
Billy:  "Call  Colonel  Hamilton." 

It  is  noticeable  that  after  Hamilton  took  charge 
complaints  of  clerical  difficulties  cease  to  appear  in 
Washington's  familiar  letters.  It  is  also  a  plain  in 
ference  that  Hamilton  was  able  to  organize  and  sys 
tematize  the  work  so  that  he  himself  was  not  en 
gulfed  by  it,  for  from  time  to  time  he  was  employed 
by  Washington  on  important  missions.  Washing 
ton's  own  letters  certify  this  fact.  When  the  news 


AT  HEADQUARTERS  61 

of  Burgoyne's  surrender  reached  Washington,  Octo 
ber,  1777,  he  sent  Hamilton  to  confer  with  General 
Gates,  bearing  a  letter  saying:  "Our  affairs  having 
happily  terminated  at  the  northward,  I  have,  by  the 
advice  of  my  general  officers,  sent  Colonel  Hamilton, 
one  of  my  aides,  to  lay  before  you  a  full  state  of  our 
situation.  .  .  .  From  Colonel  Hamilton  you  will 
have  a  clear  and  comprehensive  view  of  things,  and 
I  persuade  myself  you  will  do  all  in  your  power  to 
facilitate  the  objects  I  have  in  contemplation." 
This  was  certainly  an  important  trust  to  confide  to 
a  youth  of  twenty.  Although  necessarily  occupied 
most  of  the  time  by  staff  duties,  it  appears  that 
Hamilton  was  eager  to  be  where  the  fighting  was 
going  on.  Custis  relates  an  incident  of  the  battle 
of  Monmouth,  June  28,  1778,  which  has  doubtless 
received  some  melodramatic  color  in  its  transmis 
sion,  but  the  main  facts  are  quite  in  keeping  with 
the  characteristics  both  of  Hamilton  and  Washing 
ton,  The  behavior  of  General  Lee  had  upset  Wash 
ington's  plans  and  left  the  army  exposed  to  great 
peril.  Washington  was  so  incensed  that  he  called 
Lee  to  his  face  "a  damned  poltroon."  Lafayette, 
who  was  present,  says  it  was  the  only  time  he  "ever 
heard  General  Washington  swear. ' '  Hamilton  leaped 
from  his  horse  and,  drawing  his  sword,  said:  "We 
are  betrayed;  your  Excellency  and  the  army  are 
betrayed,  and  the  moment  has  arrived  when  every 
true  friend  of  America  and  her  cause  must  be  ready 


62  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

to  die  in  their  defence."  Hamilton  was  not  in  the 
habit  of  using  such  stilted  language,  but  that  he 
suspected  treachery  and  sprang  to  meet  it  is  quite 
probable.  Washington's  part  in  this  anecdote  beara 
the  stamp  of  authenticity,  both  as  to  words  and 
action.  "Pointing  to  the  Colonel's  horse  that  was 
cropping  the  herbage,  Washington  calmly  observed, 
'Colonel  Hamilton,  you  will  take  your  horse." 

One  outcome  of  the  discussion  over  General  Lee's 
behavior  was  a  duel  between  him  and  Colonel  Lau- 
rens,  in  which  Hamilton  acted  as  Laurens's  second, 
and  Major  Edwards  acted  for  Lee.  It  appears  from 
a  statement  drawn  up  by  the  seconds  that  the  imme 
diate  occasion  of  the  duel  was  that  "  General  Lee 
had  spoken  of  General  Washington  in  the  grossest 
and  most  opprobrious  terms  of  personal  abuse, 
which  Colonel  Laurens  thought  himself  bound  to 
resent,  as  well  on  account  of  the  relation  he  bore  to 
General  Washington  as  from  motives  of  personal 
friendship  and  respect  for  his  character."  Laurens 
was  one  of  Washington's  aides-de-camp.  The  duel 
took  place  on  Christmas  Eve,  1778,  and  was 
fought  with  pistols,  each  advancing  and  firing 
when  he  saw  fit.  Lee  was  slightly  wounded  in  the 
right  side  at  the  first  discharge.  He  demanded 
another  exchange  of  shots,  but  the  seconds  inter 
vened  and  decided  that  the  affair  should  end  where 
it  was.  Lee,  while  insisting  upon  his  right  to  criti 
cise  Washington's  military  abilities,  disavowed  any 


AT  HEADQUARTERS  63 

intention  of  reflecting  upon  Washington's  character 
as  a  man,  and  denied  ever  having  spoken  of  him  in 
terms  of  personal  abuse.  Hamilton  and  Edwards 
made  a  minute  of  the  aff air,  in  which  they  conclude : 
"Upon  the  whole,  we  think  it  a  piece  of  justice  to 
the  two  gentlemen  to  declare,  that  after  they  met, 
their  conduct  was  strongly  marked  with  all  the  po 
liteness,  generosity,  coolness  and  firmness,  that 
ought  to  characterize  a  transaction  of  this  na 
ture." 

In  this  year  Hamilton  came  of  age,  and  there  are 
strong  evidences  of  his  increasing  usefulness  to 
Washington.  He  was  picked  out  for  services  requir 
ing  shrewdness  and  good  judgment  as  well  as  intre 
pidity.  He  is  a  prominent  figure  in  all  of  Washing 
ton's  dealings  with  Congress  and  with  other  com 
manders,  and  always  acquitted  himself  with  credit. 
His  prominence,  of  course,  attracted  the  malice  of 
the  Tories.  One  of  their  prints  in  1779  contained 
the  report:  "It  is  said  little  Hamilton,  the  poet  and 
composer  to  the  Lord  Protector,  Mr.  Washington,  is 
engaged  upon  a  literary  work  which  is  intended  to 
give  posterity  a  true  estimate  of  the  present  rebellion 
and  its  supporters,  in  case  Clinton's  light  bobs 
should  extirpate  the  whole  race  of  rebels  this  cam 
paign."  An  item  published  in  1780  says  that  "Mrs. 
Washington  has  a  mottled  tom-cat  (which  she  calls 
in  a  complimentary  way,  '  Hamilton/)  with  thirteen 
yellow  rings  around  his  tail,  and  that  his  flaunting  it 


64  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

suggested  to  the  Congress  the  adoption  of  the  same 
number  of  stripes  for  the  rebel  flag." 

So  long  as  communications  were  possible  Hamilton 
tried  to  keep  in  touch  with  his  friends  at  St.  Croix 
by  letters  to  Mr.  Knox.  There  is  no  better  ex 
planation  of  Washington's  strategy  than  Hamilton 
gave  in  a  letter  recounting  the  disasters  of  1777. 
He  prepared  his  West  Indian  friends  for  more  bad 
news  by  admitting  American  inability  to  stand 
against  British  troops,  but  went  on  to  say:  "It  may 
be  asked;  if,  to  avoid  a  general  engagement,  we  give 
up  objects  of  the  first  importance,  what  is  to  hinder 
the  enemy  from  carrying  every  important  point  and 
ruining  us?  My  answer  is,  that  our  hopes  are  not 
placed  in  any  particular  city  or  spot  of  ground,  but 
in  the  preserving  a  good  army,  furnished  with  proper 
necessaries,  to  take  advantage  of  favorable*  oppor 
tunities,  and  waste  and  defeat  the  enemy  by  piece 
meal.  Every  new  post  they  take,  requires  a  new 
division  of  their  forces,  and  enables  us  to  strike  with 
our  united  force  against  a  part  of  theirs."  This  out 
lines  the  policy  that  was  in  the  end  successful. 


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR 

THE  influences  that  shaped  Hamilton's  career  and 
energized  his  activities  as  a  statesman  cannot  be 
appreciated  without  taking  into  account  the  char 
acteristics  of  the  struggle  as  they  were  revealed  in 
actual  experience.  The  men  who  led  the  movement 
for  armed  resistance  to  British  policy  were  well 
aware  that  this  would  cause  a  dissolution  of  public 
order  that  would  bring  in  a  train  of  miseries.  But 
they  thought  that  civil  war,  with  all  its  risks,  was 
preferable  to  the  surrender  of  constitutional  rights 
through  submission  to  the  jurisdiction  of  the  British 
Parliament  over  the  colonies  in  the  matter  of  taxa 
tion.  Nevertheless,  they  felt  keenly  and  much  de 
plored  the  turbulence  and  anarchy  produced  by  the 
disorders  of  the  times.  It  has  been  noted  that 
Hamilton,  while  still  at  college,  observed  this  ten 
dency,  analyzed  its  nature,  and  urged  upon  John 
Jay  the  necessity  of  stationing  troops  in  New  York 
to  keep  order.  A  diary  kept  by  the  Reverend  Mr. 
Shewkirk,  pastor  of  the  Moravian  Church,  New 
York,  has  this  entry,  June  13,  1776:  "Here  in  town 
very  unhappy  and  shocking  scenes  were  exhibited. 
On  Monday  night  some  men  called  Tories  were  car 
ried  and  hauled  about  through  the  streets,  with 

65 


66  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

candles  forced  to  be  held  by  them,  or  pushed  in  their 
faces,  and  their  heads  burned;  but  on  Wednesday, 
in  the  open  day,  the  scene  was  by  far  worse ;  several, 
and  among  them  gentlemen,  were  carried  on  rails; 
some  stripped  naked  and  dreadfully  abused." 

Hamilton's  orderly  mind  detested  such  ruffianism, 
of  which  there  were  many  instances.  Alexander 
Gray  don's  Memoirs  describes  "the  fashion  of  tar 
ring,  feathering,  and  carting "  inflicted  upon  the 
Tories.  One  of  the  victims  was  Isaac  Hunt,  then  a 
lawyer  but  subsequently  a  clergyman  with  a  charge 
in  Barbados.  He  became  the  father  of  Leigh  Hunt, 
the  English  poet,  essayist,  and  journalist.  Graydon 
mentions  that,  when  Doctor  Kearsley,  a  prominent 
citizen  of  Philadelphia,  was  carted  because  of  his 
Tory  opinions,  he  "was  seized  at  his  own  door  by  a 
party  of  the  militia,  and  in  the  attempt  to  resist 
them  received  a  wound  in  his  hand  from  a  bayonet." 
Militia  of  this  class  were  the  very  kind  whose  liabil 
ity  to  panic  and  precipitate  retreat  was  the  con 
tinual  source  of  military  disaster. 

Graydon  is  a  trustworthy  witness.  He  was 
twenty-three  when  the  Revolutionary  War  began, 
and  on  January  6,  1776,  he  was  commissioned  cap 
tain  in  a  Pennsylvania  regiment.  He  was  well  edu 
cated,  a  lawyer  by  profession,  and  he  went  into  the 
war  with  just  such  patriotic  motives  as  had  actuated 
Hamilton,  whom  Graydon  greatly  admired.  Gray 
don  relates  that  when  he  joined  the  army  in  New 


THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR         67 

York  it  was  characterized  by  "irregularity,  want  of 
discipline,  bad  arms,  and  defective  equipment  in 
all  respects."  Among  the  " miserably  constituted 
bands  from  New  England"  the  only  force  deserving 
respect  was  a  Marblehead  regiment  under  John 
Glover.  Gray  don  was  informed  that  "it  was  no 
unusual  thing  in  the  army  before  Boston,  for  a 
colonel  to  make  drummers  and  fifers  of  his  sons, 
thereby,  not  only  being  enabled  to  form  a  very  snug, 
economical  mess,  but  to  aid  also  considerably  the 
revenue  to  the  family  chest."  Graydon,  who  had 
been  much  impressed  with  New  England  valor  by 
the  accounts  that  reached  him  of  Bunker  Hill,  was 
puzzled  to  account  for  the  poor  quality  of  the  New 
England  troops,  and  particularly  the  absence  of 
gentry  among  them.  "There  were  some,  indeed,  in 
the  higher  ranks,  and  here  and  there  a  man  of 
decent  breeding,  in  the  capacity  of  an  aide-de-camp 
or  a  brigade  major;  but  anything  above  the  condi 
tion  of  a  clown,  in  the  regiments  we  came  in  contact 
with,  was  a  rarity."  But  conditions  were  not  much 
better  in  the  militia  from  other  provinces.  Gray 
don  relates  that  the  colonel  of  his  own  regiment  ob 
tained  leave  of  absence  to  visit  his  family  and  never 
returned.  Graydon  himself  and  some  other  officers 
were  tempted  to  follow  "his  illaudable  example," 
so  disgusted  were  they  with  the  jobbery  of  the  Pro 
vincial  Council,  who  "went  on  in  the  manufacture 
of  majors  and  colonels,  in  utter  disregard  of  the 


68  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

claims  of  the  officers  in  service,  and  sometimes  of 
the  coarsest  materials. "  At  the  time  when  Wash 
ington  was  with  the  remnant  of  his  army  at  Morris- 
town  suffering  from  lack  of  men  and  supplies,  Gray- 
don  notes  that  "  captains,  majors,  and  colonels  had 
become  'good  cheap7  in  the  land;  but  unfortunately, 
those  war  functionaries  were  not  found  at  the  head 
of  their  men;  they  generally  figured  as  bar-keepers, 
condescendingly  serving  out  small  measures  of  liquor 
to  their  less  dignified  customers." 

It  might  be  supposed  that  this  account  could  be 
explained  away  as  an  explosion  of  spleen,  but  the 
case  is  put  as  strongly  by  other  observers.  When 
Baron  de  Kalb  joined  the  army  he  was  astonished 
to  find  that  the  blacksmith  attached  to  his  troop 
held  a  captain's  commission.  The  Reverend  Jacob 
Duche*,  chaplain  of  Congress,  in  a  letter  to  Washing 
ton,  October  16,  1777,  remarked:  "As  to  the  army 
itself,  what  have  you  to  expect  from  them?  Have 
they  not  frequently  abandoned  even  yourself  in  the 
hour  of  extremity?  Have  you,  can  you  have,  the 
least  confidence  in  a  set  of  undisciplined  men  and 
officers,  many  of  whom  have  been  taken  frojn  the 
lowest  of  the  people,  without  principle  and  without 
courage  ?  Take  away  those  that  surround  your  per 
son,  how  few  are  there  that  you  can  ask  to  sit  at 
your  table !" 

Washington's  own  opinion  did  not  greatly  differ 
from  this,  as  many  expressions  in  lu's  letters  attest. 


THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR         69 

Writing  under  date  of  February  10,  1776,  of  the 
army  he  commanded  before  Boston,  he  remarked: 
"To  be  plain,  these  people  are  not  to  be  depended 
upon  if  exposed";  but  he  added:  "I  do  not  apply 
this  only  to  these  people.  I  suppose  it  to  be  the 
case  with  all  raw  and  undisciplined  troops."  Writ 
ing  soon  after  the  engagements  at  Trenton  and 
Princeton,  the  most  creditable  affairs  of  the  New 
Jersey  campaign,  he  said  of  the  militia:  "I  am  sure 
they  never  can  be  brought  fairly  up  to  an  attack  in 
any  serious  affair." 

In  a  letter  written  in  1780  Hamilton  gave  this 
account  of  the  condition  of  the  army:  "It  is  now  a 
mob,  rather  than  an  army;  without  clothing,  with 
out  pay,  without  provision,  without  morals,  without 
discipline.  We  begin  to  hate  the  country  for  its 
neglect  of  us.  The  country  begins  to  hate  us  for 
our  oppressions  of  them." 

The  Chevalier  de  la  Luzerne,  who  was  sent  to 
the  United  States  by  the  French  Government  to 
view  the  situation,  reported  April  16,  1780:  "It  is 
difficult  to  form  a  just  conception  of  the  depreda 
tions  which  have  been  committed  in  the  manage 
ment  of  war  supplies— forage,  clothing,  hospitals, 
tents,  quarters,  and  transportation.  About  nine 
thousand  men  employed  in  this  service,  received 
enormous  salaries  and  devoured  the  subsistence  of 
the  army,  while  it  was  tormented  with  hunger  and 
the  extremes  of  want." 


70  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

The  Congressional  politicians  had  constantly  in 
mind  what  happened  to  the  English  Parliament 
after  they  had  allowed  Oliver  Cromwell  to  create  a 
disciplined  army.  John  Adams,  the  chairman  of 
the  War  Board  of  Congress,  was  a  timid  man. 
When  news  came  of  the  approach  of  the  British  to 
Philadelphia  from  the  southwest  he  rode  northeast 
as  far  as  Trenton,  in  his  panic-stricken  rush  to  get 
as  far  away  as  possible,  before  directing  his  course 
to  Lancaster,  where  Congress  was  to  reassemble, 
making  his  way  thither  through  Bethlehem — a  route 
so  circuitous  that  it  more  than  doubled  the  length 
of  his  journey.  But  there  was  no  risk  so  great  to 
his  mind  as  allowing  a  regular  army  to  be  formed. 
Adams's  adherence  to  the  principle  of  the  casual 
levies  for  short  terms  was  so  deeply  resented  by 
Hamilton  that  it  was  a  leading  count  of  his  famous 
indictment  of  Adams  over  twenty  years  later. 

In  addition  to  being  an  inefficient  body,  the  Con 
tinental  Congress  was  a  corrupt  and  extravagant 
body.  Officers'  commissions  were  treated  as  a  pat 
ronage  fund  in  which  members  felt  bound  to  secure 
equitable  allotments.  In  addition  to  costly  pro 
fusion  there  was  favoritism  so  gross  that  Washing 
ton  had  sometimes  to  protest.  The  favor  of  a  mem 
ber  of  Congress  might  be  a  more  potent  source  of 
advancement  than  brave  and  capable  service  in  the 
field.  The  immediate  cause  of  Arnold's  treason  was 
the  neglect  of  his  claims  in  favor  of  much  less  deserv- 


THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR         71 

ing  officers  who  had  political  influence.  In  such 
respects,  however,  the  Continental  Congress  was 
quite  true  to  type.  Government  by  an  assembly 
has  been  everywhere  and  always  corrupt,  extrava 
gant,  and  inefficient  government.  The  only  consti 
tutional  function  that  an  assembly  can  properly  dis 
charge  is  to  serve  as  a  control  over  the  government 
in  behalf  of  the  people,  but  the  integrity  of  this 
function  can  be  secured  only  by  shutting  it  out  from 
any  participation  in  appointments  to  office  or  dis 
bursement  of  public  funds.  Then  and  only  then 
will  it  hold  to  strict  accountability  the  administra 
tive  officers  who  do  make  appointments  and  dis 
bursements.  But  this  is  representative  government 
of  the  modern  type,  still  rare  in  practice;  in  the 
eighteenth  century  it  was  unknown.  Most  of  the 
assemblies  that  had  existed  in  Europe  had  been 
abolished  as  intolerable  impediments  to  efficient 
government.  Those  that  still  survived  bore  the 
feudal  pattern  of  class  interest  and  partitioned  sov 
ereignty,  and  even  in  England,  where  the  represen 
tative  type  was  eventually  developed,  it  was  still 
inchoate  in  form  and  unrecognized  in  its  essential 
character.  In  its  general  characteristics  the  Con 
tinental  Congress  was  like  the  Commonwealth  Par 
liament  that  Cromwell  turned  out  of  doors;  but  sug 
gestions  made  to  Washington  that  he  ought  to  do 
likewise  were  indignantly  rejected  by  that  loyal 
Virginian  gentleman. 


72  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

The  Continental  Congress  was  probably  no  more 
addicted  to  corruption  than  is  usually  the  case  with 
assemblies  of  its  type,  but  there  is  evidence  that 
rapid  deterioration  took  place.  It  was  referred  to 
in  the  Reverend  Jacob  Duche's  letter  already  men 
tioned.  He  said  to  Washington :  "  The  most  respect 
able  characters  have  withdrawn  themselves,  and 
are  succeeded  by  a  great  majority  of  illiberal  and 
violent  men.  Your  feelings  must  be  greatly  hurt 
by  the  representation  from  your  native  province. 
...  As  to  those  of  my  own  province,  some  of 
them  are  so  obscure  that  their  very  names  never 
met  my  ears  before,  and  others  have  only  been  dis 
tinguished  for  the  weakness  of  their  understandings 
and  the  violence  of  their  tempers.  .  .  .  From  the 
New  England  provinces  can  you  find  one  that  as  a 
gentleman  you  could  wish  to  associate  with?  unless 
the  soft  and  mild  address  of  Mr.  Hancock  can  atone 
for  his  want  of  every  other  qualification  necessary 
for  the  station  he  fills.  Bankrupts,  attorneys,  and 
men  of  desperate  futures  are  his  colleagues." 

This  estimate  of  the  character  of  Congress,  made 
by  the  clergyman  who  was  then  acting  as  its  chap 
lain,  is  corroborated  by  a  letter  written  by  IJenry 
Laurens,  who  succeeded  Hancock  as  president  of 
Congress.  A  letter  he  wrote  in  the  summer  of 
1778,  in  which  he  referred  to  "scenes  of  venality, 
peculation  and  fraud"  in  Congress,  was  intercepted 
by  the  British  and  published  to  discredit  the  Ameri 
can  cause. 


THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR         73 

Although  Congress  was  probably  no  more  corrupt 
than  the  Commonwealth  Parliament  in  England, 
yet,  so  far  as  there  is  material  for  comparison,  it  is 
to  be  inferred  that  it  was  much  more  fond  of  ex 
travagant  display.  The  Puritan  composition  of  the 
Commonwealth  Parliament  kept  down  the  showy 
vices.  Congress  seemed  to  revel  in  display.  The 
men  of  whom  it  was  originally  composed  included 
provincial  magnates  who  lived  in  a  lavish  way 
themselves  and  regarded  that  as  a  proper  incident 
of  high  station.  The  standard  they  set  up  was 
imitated  by  others  at  the  public  expense,  in  all 
branches  of  the  civil  government.  An  instructive 
document  of  the  times  is  a  bill  for  the  entertainment 
given,  December  1,  1778,  in  honor  of  the  election  of 
Joseph  Reed  as  president  of  the  Pennsylvania  Coun 
cil.  The  bill,  contracted  at  a  time  when  the  army 
lacked  food  and  clothing,  amounted  to  £2,295  15s. 
It  included  such  items  as  "  116  large  bowls  of  punch," 
"2  tubs  of  grog  for  artillery  soldiers,"  "1  gallon 
spirits  for  bell  ringers,"  "96  wine  glasses  broke,"  "5 
decanters  broke."  1  The  festivities  about  Congress 
were  never  greater  than  during  the  darkest  period  of 
the  American  cause.  Washington  wrote  that  "party 
disputes  and  personal  quarrels  are  the  great  business 
of  the  day,  whilst  the  momentous  concerns  of  an 
empire,  a  great  and  accumulating  debt,  ruined 
finances,  depreciated  money,  and  want  of  credit, 

1  The  itemized  account  is  given  in  A.  S.  Bolles's  Pennsylvania, 
Province  and  State,  vol.  II,  p.  45. 


74  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

which  in  its  consequences  is  the  want  of  everything, 
are  but  secondary  considerations  and  postponed 
from  day  to  day  and  from  week  to  week,  as  if  our 
affairs  wore  the  most  promising  aspect.  .  .  .  And 
yet  an  assembly,  a  concert,  a  dinner  or  a  supper, 
will  not  only  take  men  off  from  acting  in  this  busi 
ness,  but  even  from  thinking  of  it." 

In  his  personal  correspondence  Hamilton  sharply 
criticised  the  character  of  Congress.  Writing  to 
Governor  Clinton,  February  13,  1778,  he  said: 
"Many  members  of  it  are,  no  doubt,  men  in  every 
respect  fit  for  the  trust,  but  this  cannot  be  said  of 
it  as  a  body.  Folly,  caprice,  a  want  of  foresight, 
comprehension  and  dignity,  comprise  the  general 
tenor  of  their  action."  Hamilton  was  so  indignant 
with  the  behavior  of  a  member  of  Congress  that  he 
twice  assailed  him  in  the  public  press,  over  the  sig 
nature  "Publius,"  which  later  he  used  for  his  Fed- 
eralist  articles.  He  prefaced  his  attacks  by  a  letter 
to  the  printer  of  the  New  York  Journal,  in  which 
he  said  that  "when  a  man  appointed  to  be  the  guar 
dian  of  the  State  and  the  depositary  of  the  happiness 
and  morals  of  the  people,  forgetful  of  the  solemn 
relation  in  which  he  stands,  descends  to  the  dishon 
est  artifices  of  a  mercantile  projector,  and  sacrifices 
his  conscience  and  his  trust  to  pecuniary  motives, 
there  is  no  strain  of  abhorrence  of  which  the  human 
mind  is  capable,  no  punishment  the  vengeance  of 
the  people  can  inflict,  which  may  not  be  applied  to 


THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR         75 

him  with  justice."  Two  articles  followed  in  which 
the  member  of  Congress  was  told  that  he  had  shown 
that  "America  can  already  boast  of  at  least  one 
public  character  as  abandoned  as  any  history  of 
past  or  present  times  can  produce."  The  man 
Hamilton  thus  censured  was  a  signer  of  the  Declara 
tion  of  Independence,  Samuel  Chase  of  Maryland. 
The  particular  charge  against  him  was  that,  when 
General  Wadsworth,  the  commissary-general,  was 
arranging  for  purchases  of  flour,  Chase  delayed 
action  by  the  committee  of  Congress,  meanwhile 
forming  "connections  for  monopolizing  that  article, 
and  raising  the  price  upon  the  public  more  than  one 
hundred  per  cent."  Hamilton  denounced  this  pro 
ceeding  as  "an  infamous  traffic,"  and  he  character 
ized  Chase  as  a  man  in  whom  love  of  money  and 
love  of  power  predominated,  and  who  was  content 
with  the  merit  of  possessing  qualities  useful  only  to 
himself.  The  affair  made  a  great  stir  at  the  time, 
but  the  charge  did  not  prevent  Chase  from  arriving 
at  eminence  in  Maryland,  and  in  1796  he  was  ap 
pointed  a  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  from  which  office  an  ineffectual  effort  was 
made  to  remove  him  by  impeachment. 

Hamilton's  term  of  service  as  Washington's  mili 
tary  secretary  covered  the  period  when  the  mal 
administration  was  at  its  worst.  Drafts  of  the  most 
important  reports  made  to  Congress  by  Washington 
on  general  conditions  exist  among  the  Hamilton 


76  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

papers  in  his  handwriting.  Among  those  is  the  long 
report  of  January  28,  1778,  on  the  reorganization  of 
the  army,  addressed  by  Washington  to  the  commit 
tee  of  Congress  that  visited  the  camp  at  Valley 
Forge;  the  report  on  the  organization  of  the  office  of 
inspector-general,  May  5,  1778,  and  also  the  actual 
plan  as  adopted  by  Congress,  February  18,  1779; 
also,  a  number  of  reports  on  military  discipline. 
He  who  prepares  the  reports  of  another  person  is  in 
a  position  to  influence  that  person's  views  and 
policy,  and  there  is  evidence  that  Hamilton  wielded 
such  influence.  John  Laurens,  one  of  Washington's 
aides,  was  sent  on  a  mission  to  France  in  1781  to 
obtain  aid  in  money  and  supplies.  His  instructions 
are  all  in  the  handwriting  of  Hamilton,  with  the; 
exception  of  the  four  closing  lines,  which  are  in  the 
handwriting  of  Washington.  This  document  bears 
distinctly  the  marks  of  Hamilton's  style  and  gives 
expression  to  his  characteristic  ideas  on  govern 
ment.  Hamilton's  personal  authorship  is  distinctly 
set  forth  in  a  comprehensive  draft  of  military  regu 
lations  which  Hamilton  proposed,  "submitting  to 
his  Excellency  the  Commander-in-chief,  to  distin 
guish  such  as  may  be  published  under  his  own 
authority  in  General  orders,  and  such  as  will  require 
the  sanction  and  authority  of  the  Committee  of 
Congress." 

In  a  report  to  Congress  on  the  military  situation, 
August  20,  1780,  Washington  made  a  stern  indict- 


THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR        77 

ment  of  the  policy  to  which  Congress  had  obsti 
nately  adhered.  This  report,  which  defines  issues 
on  which  Congress  has  been  at  variance  with  expert 
authority  in  every  national  crisis  down  to  our  own 
times,  bears  the  marks  of  Hamilton's  composition  in 
every  line.  It  declares  that  "to  attempt  to  carry 
on  the  war  with  militia  against  disciplined  troops 
would  be  to  attempt  what  the  common  sense  and 
common  experience  of  mankind  will  pronounce  im 
practicable."  The  practice  of  short  enlistments  is 
characterized  as  "pernicious  beyond  description," 
and  a  draft  for  three  years  or  the  length  of  the  war 
is  declared  to  be  the  only  effectual  method.  Then 
followed  this  eloquent  passage: 

Had  we  formed  a  permanent  army  in  the  beginning, 
which,  by  the  continuance  of  the  same  men  in  service, 
had  been  capable  of  discipline,  we  never  should  have  had 
to  retreat  with  a  handful  of  men  across  the  Delaware  in 
1776,  trembling  for  the  fate  of  America,  which  nothing 
but  the  infatuation  of  the  enemy  could  have  saved;  we 
should  not  have  remained  all  the  succeeding  winter  at 
their  mercy,  with  sometimes  scarcely  a  sufficient  body  of 
men  to  mount  the  ordinary  guards,  liable  at  every  moment 
to  be  dissipated,  if  they  had  only  thought  proper  to  march 
against  us;  we  should  not  have  been  under  the  necessity 
of  fighting  at  Brandywine,  with  an  unequal  number  of 
raw  troops,  and  afterwards  of  seeing  Philadelphia  fall  a 
prey  to  a  victorious  army;  we  should  not  have  been  at 
Valley  Forge  with  less  than  half  the  force  of  the  enemy, 
destitute  of  everything,  in  a  situation  neither  to  resist  nor 


78  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

to  retire;  we  should  not  have  seen  New  York  left  with  a 
handful  of  men,  yet  an  overmatch  for  the  main  army  of 
these  States,  while  the  principal  part  of  their  force  was  de 
tached  for  the  reduction  of  two  of  them;  we  should  not 
have  found  ourselves  this  Spring  so  weak,  as  to  be  insulted 
by  five  thousand  men,  unable  to  protect  our  baggage  and 
magazines,  their  security  depending  on  a  good  counte 
nance,  and  a  want  of  enterprise  in  the  enemy;  we  should 
not  have  been  the  greatest  part  of  the  war  inferior  to  the 
enemy,  indebted  for  our  safety  to  their  inactivity,  endur 
ing  frequently  the  mortification  of  seeing  inviting  oppor 
tunities  to  ruin  them  pass  unimproved  for  want  of  a 
force,  which  the  country  was  completely  able  to  afford; 
to  see  the  country  ravaged,  our  towns  burnt,  the  inhabi 
tants  plundered,  abused,  murdered  with  impunity  from 
the  same  cause. 

Nor  have  the  ill  effects  been  confined  to  the  military 
line.  A  great  part  of  the  embarrassments  in  the  civil 
departments  flow  from  the  same  source.  The  derange 
ment  of  our  finances  is  essentially  to  be  ascribed  to  it. 
The  expenses  of  the  war,  and  the  paper  emissions  have 
been  greatly  multiplied  by  it.  We  have  had,  a  great  part 
of  the  time,  two  sets  of  men  to  feed  and  pay,  the  discharged 
men  going  home  and  the  levies  coming  in.  ...  Our 
officers  are  reduced  to  the  disagreeable  necessity  of  per 
forming  the  duties  of  drill  sergeants  to  them,  and  with  this 
mortifying  reflection  annexed  to  the  business,  that  by  the 
time  they  have  taught  those  men  the  rudiments  of  a  sol 
dier's  duty,  their  term  of  service  will  have  expired,  and 
the  work  is  to  recommence  with  an  entire  new  set.  The 
consumption  of  provision,  arms,  accoutrements,  stores  of 
every  kind,  has  been  doubled  in  spite  of  every  precaution 
I  could  use,  not  only  from  the  cause  just  mentioned,  but 
from  the  carelessness  and  licentiousness  incident  to  militia 


THE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  WAR         79 

and  irregular  troops.  Our  discipline  also  has  been  much 
injured,  if  not  ruined,  by  such  constant  changes.  The  fre 
quent  calls  upon  the  militia  have  interrupted  the  cultiva 
tion  of  the  land,  and  of  course  have  lessened  the  quantity 
of  its  produce,  occasioned  a  scarcity,  and  enhanced  the 
prices.  In  an  army  so  unstable  as  ours,  order  and  econ 
omy  have  been  impracticable.  .  .  . 

There  is  every  reason  to  believe  the  war  has  been 
protracted  on  this  account.  Our  opposition  being  less, 
made  the  successes  of  the  enemy  greater.  The  fluctuation 
of  the  army  kept  alive  their  hopes,  and  at  every  period 
of  the  dissolution  of  a  considerable  part  of  it,  they  have 
flattered  themselves  with  some  decisive  advantages.  Had 
we  kept  a  permanent  army  on  foot,  the  enemy  could  have 
had  nothing  to  hope  for,  and  would  in  all  probability  have 
listened  to  terms  long  since.  ...  It  is  an  old  maxim, 
that  the  surest  way  to  make  a  good  peace  is  to  be  well 
prepared  for  war. 

It  was  while  undergoing  such  experiences  that 
Hamilton  began  to  form  the  plans  which  he  even-     < 
tually  applied  to  the  organization  of  public  authority. 


CHAPTER  VII 
FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP 

ABOUT  the  time  that  Hamilton  became  an  aide  to 
Washington,  he  was  asked  to  correspond  with  the 
New  York  Convention  through  a  committee,  then 
composed  of  Gouverneur  Morris,  Robert  Livingston, 
and  William  Allison.  In  a  letter  of  March  20,  1777, 
he  gave  his  understanding  of  the  arrangement  as 
being  that,  so  far  as  his  leisure  would  permit  and  his 
duty  warrant,  he  should  "communicate  such  pieces 
of  intelligence  as  shall  be  received,  and  such  com 
ments  upon  them  as  shall  appear  necessary  to  con 
vey  a  true  idea  of  what  is  going  on  in  the  military 
line."  That  the  Convention  should  have  thought  it 
important  to  establish  such  relations  with  a  youth 
of  twenty,  might  easily  be  construed  as  evidence  of 
the  deep  impression  already  made  by  Hamilton's 
personality  upon  the  public  men  with  whom  he  was 
brought  in  contact;  but  a  more  probable  opinion  is 
that  at  the  outset  the  arrangement  was  the  expres 
sion  of  provincial  solicitude,  not  to  say  jealousy, 
about  transactions  to  which  the  State  was  a  party 
and  which  yet  lay  beyond  the  bounds  of  State 
authority.  The  particularist  spirit  was  then  the 
strongest  force  in  American  politics,  and,  although 

80 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP     81 

yielding  much  to  the  military  necessities  of  the  situ 
ation,  it  did  so  reluctantly  and  with  large  reserve. 

The  result  of  this  arrangement  was  a  series  of 
reports  from  Hamilton  on  the  progress  of  the  cam 
paign  and  the  prospects  of  the  American  cause, 
showing  such  clear  vision  and  sound  judgment  that 
his  reputation  as  a  publicist,  started  by  his  early 
pamphlets,  was  confirmed,  extended,  and  perma 
nently  established.  General  recognition  of  Hamil 
ton's  position  among  the  leading  men  of  New  York 
dates  from  this  period.  The  hospitality  which 
Hamilton  had  received  on  arriving  in  New  York 
was  no  more  than  was  then  readily  extended  to  any 
visitor  who  had  the  dress  and  manners  of  polite 
society.  Its  significance  of  individual  value  was 
slight.  But  the  position  he  speedily  acquired  after 
becoming  the  correspondent  of  the  New  York  Con 
vention  was  decidedly  that  of  individual  distinction. 
In  a  few  months  leading  men  were  consulting  him 
about  the  form  of  government  to  be  adopted  in 
New  York.  In  May,  1777,  Gouverneur  Morris  sent 
a  pamphlet  describing  the  scheme  he  proposed.  In 
reply  Hamilton  remarked  that  while  considering  it 
"in  the  main  as  a  wise  and  excellent  system,  I  freely 
confess  it  appears  to  me  to  have  some  faults."  There 
is  no  indication  that  Morris  regarded  this  as  a  pre 
sumptuous  attitude  for  a  youth  of  twenty  to  take. 
Morris  argued  the  case,  defending  the  partitions  of 
authority  and  system  of  checks  he  proposed  on  the 


82  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

usual  ground  of  the  caprice  and  instability  of  the 
mass  of  the  people.  Hamilton's  comment  is  sur 
prising  in  its  discernment  of  the  principles  upon 
which  democratic  government  may  be  and  has  been 
safely  established.  He  observed:  "That  instability 
is  inherent  in  the  nature  of  popular  governments  I 
think  very  disputable;  unstable  democracy  is  an 
epithet  frequently  in  the  mouths  of  politicians,  but 
I  believe  that  from  a  strict  examination  of  the  mat 
ter — from  the  records  of  history,  it  will  be  found 
that  the  fluctuations  of  governments  in  which  the 
popular  principle  has  borne  a  considerable  sway, 
have  proceeded  from  its  being  compounded  with 
other  principles;  and  from  its  being  made  to  operate 
in  an  improper  channel.  Compound  governments, 
though  they  may  be  harmonious  in  the  beginning, 
will  introduce  distinct  interests,  and  these  interests 
will  clash,  throw  the  State  into  convulsions,  and 
produce  a  change  or  dissolution.  When  the  delib 
erative  or  judicial  powers  are  vested  wholly  or  partly 
in  the  collective  body  of  the  people,  you  must  expect 
error,  confusion,  and  instability.  But  a  representa 
tive  democracy,  where  the  right  of  election  is  well 
secured  and  regulated,  and  the  exercise  of  the  legis 
lative,  executive,  and  judiciary  authorities  is  vested 
in  select  persons,  chosen  really  and  not  nominally 
by  the  people,  will,  in  my  opinion,  be  most  likely  to 
be  happy,  regular  and  durable." 

This  judgment,  now  so  abundantly  vindicated  by 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP     83 

the  experience  of  Switzerland,  Australia,  New  Zea 
land,  Canada,  and  even  little  Barbados,  with  its 
negro  electorate,  under  a  simple  form  of  representa 
tive  democracy,  as  contrasted  with  the  results  of 
the  compound  government  adopted  by  American 
States,  displays  a  prescience  that,  for  the  period,  is 
simply  amazing.  At  that  time  the  prevailing  opin 
ion  in  Europe  was  that  absolutism  had  been  the 
form  of  government  most  successful  in  preserving 
public  order,  whereas  all  other  forms  that  had  been 
tried  had  failed  on  that  essential  point.  Although 
in  England  the  actual  form  precluded  absolutism, 
so  acute  and  dispassionate  a  thinker  as  Hume  held 
that  "we  shall  at  last,  after  many  convulsions  and 
civil  wars,  find  repose  in  absolute  monarchy,  which 
it  would  have  been  happier  for  us  to  have  estab 
lished  peaceably  from  the  beginning."  At  a  time 
when  Hamilton  was  imbibing  political  ideas  in  his 
boyhood  in  the  West  Indies,  Oliver  Goldsmith  was 
describing  republics  as  places  "  where  the  laws  gov 
ern  the  poor  and  the  rich  govern  the  laws,"  and  was 
contending  that  every  diminution  of  the  power  of 
the  sovereign  was  "an  infringement  upon  the  real 
liberties  of  the  subject."  The  concept  of  represen- 
tativdemcracy,  guarded  against  abuse  of  power, 
ition  or  limitation  of  authority  but  by 
ountability  and  full  responsibility  for  every 
of  power,  was  quite  unknown  at  the  time  Ham 
ilton  w!b|e.  The  plebeianizing  of  authority  had 


84  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

begun  in  New  England,  through  the  town-meeting 
system  which  Congregationalism  had  extracted  from 
mediaeval  parish  arrangements,  but  nowhere  was 
democracy  in  greater  disrepute.  John  Adams's  vo 
luminous  writings  on  politics  are  a  continual  dirge  on 
the  iniquity  of  democracy.  Compound  government, 
giving  the  people  a  slice  of  power  but  conferring  the 
real  control  upon  magisterial  authority,  was  the 
most  extreme  concession  thought  to  be  practicable. 
Hamilton's  views  had  no  effect  upon  the  character 
of  the  State  constitution  adopted  by  New  York  in 
1777.  Indeed,  his  ideas  had  not  then  been  put  into 
systematic  form,  but  were  expressed  merely  in  the 
way  of  dissent  from  the  principles  upon  which  the 
scheme  of  a  State  constitution  was  framed.  How 
ever,  the  processes  of  his  thought  had  already  begun 
which. eventually  found  practical  expression  in  the 
organization  of  national  authority.  The  ideas  which 
he  eventually  put  into  practical  effect,  in  his  work 
as  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  were  first  stated  in 
papers  prepared  while  in  winter  quarters  at  Morris- 
town  in  1779-80.  The  first  of  these,  the  extant 
draft  of  which  is  undated,  affords  internal  evidence 
that  it  was  written  about  November,  1779.  It  is  in 
the  form  of  a  letter,  addressed  to  a  member  of  Con 
gress  who  is  not  mentioned  by  name.  J.  C.  Hamil 
ton,  in  his  biography,  says  that  it  was  sent  "to 
Robert  Morris,  then  a  delegate  from  Pennsylvania 
to  Congress,"  and  this  statement  has  been  generally 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP     85 

accepted  by  subsequent  biographers.  But  Robert 
Morris  was  not  at  that  time  a  member  of  Congress, 
his  term  having  expired  November  1,  1778.  And  if 
the  letter  was  to  Robert  Morris,  why  was  it  sent 
anonymously?  Hamilton  was  then  on  easy  terms 
with  Morris,  but  the  letter  says  that,  "though  the 
writer  has  reasons  which  make  him  unwilling  to  be 
known,  if  a  personal  conference  with  him  should  be 
thought  material  he  will  endeavor  to  comply";  and 
that  he  may  be  communicated  with  by  letter  "di 
rected  to  James  Montague,  Esquire,  lodged  in  the 
Post  Office  at  Morristown."  It  was  not  Hamilton's 
wont  to  be  so  shy,  nor  is  there  any  other  mark  of 
such  a  feeling  in  his  correspondence  at  this  period. 
It  is  at  least  a  plausible  conjecture  that  this  letter 
was  addressed  to  Major-General  John  Sullivan,  then 
a  member  of  Congress  from  New  Hampshire.  He 
commanded  a  division  at  Trenton,  Brandywine,  and 
Germantown,  and  in  military  rank  Hamilton  was 
much  his  inferior.  This  would  account  for  the  cau 
tious  approach  made  by  Hamilton.  Certain  it  is 
that  Sullivan  received  such  a  deep  impression  of 
Hamilton's  ability  as  a  financier  that  he  thought  of 
having  Hamilton  appointed  to  the  position  of  super 
intendent  of  finance,  and  wrote  to  Washington  about 
it.  If  Hamilton's  letter  was  to  Sullivan  and  was 
followed  by  personal  interviews,  that  would  explain 
Sullivan's  behavior,  which  otherwise  seems  unac 
countable.  The  letter  discussed  the  means  of  estab- 


86  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

lishing  a  national  bank,  and  it  is  the  earliest  known 
American  project  of  that  character.  As  it  turned 
out,  nothing  came  of  Sullivan's  proceedings.  In 
February,  1781,  he  wrote  to  Washington:  "I  found 
the  eyes  of  Congress  turned  upon  Robert  Morris  as 
financier.  I  did  not  therefore  nominate  Colonel 
Hamilton,  as  I  foresaw  it  would  be  a  vain  attempt." 

Hamilton  himself  had  strongly  recommended 
Morris  for  that  post,  and  when  some  difficulties  oc 
curred  between  Morris  and  Congress  as  to  the  extent 
of  his  authority  Hamilton  addressed  to  him  the 
most  earnest  plea  in  favor  of  his  retention  of  the 
office.  "I  know  of  no  other  in  America,"  he  said, 
"who  unites  so  many  advantages;  and  of  course 
every  impediment  to  your  acceptance  is  to  me  a 
subject  of  chagrin.  I  flatter  myself  Congress  will 
not  preclude  the  public  from  your  services  by  an 
obstinate  refusal  of  reasonable  conditions;  and,  as 
one  deeply  interested  in  the  event,  I  am  happy  in 
believing  you  will  not  easily  be  discouraged  from 
undertaking  an  office,  by  which  you  may  render 
America,  and  the  world,  no  less  a  service  than  the 
establishment  of  American  independence !  Tis  by 
introducing  order  into  our  finances — by  restoring 
public  credit — not  by  gaining  battles,  that  we  are 
finally  to  gain  our  object." 

This  letter  bears  date  of  April  30,  1781,  at  which 
time  Hamilton  had  not  long  turned  twenty-four. 
Thus  it  appears  that  he  had  already  adopted  the 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP     87 

economic  criterion  of  political  values,  which  was  the 
guiding  principle  of  his  statesmanship.  The  letter 
does  not  merely  urge  Morris  to  face  irksome  respon 
sibilities;  it  goes  on  to  discuss  the  ways  and  means. 
"In  expectation  that  all  difficulties  will  be  removed," 
he  remarked,  "I  take  the  liberty  to  submit  to  you 
some  ideas  relative  to  the  objects  of  your  depart 
ment."  He  proceeds  at  a  length  of  over  14,000 
words  to  offer  what  is,  in  fact,  a  systematic  treatise 
on  public  finance,  from  the  standpoint  of  American 
needs  and  interests,  strongly  recommending  "the 
institution  of  a  National  Bank"  for  which  he  offers 
detailed  plans  digested  into  twenty  articles,  each  of 
which  is  accompanied  by  explanatory  remarks. 

At  that  time  Robert  Morris  was  forty-seven  years 
old.  In  twenty  years  of  successful  activity  as  a 
Philadelphia  merchant  he  had  gained  a  competence 
and  was  more  desirous  of  taking  his  ease  than  of 
increasing  his  engagements.  But  his  position  and 
ability  kept  attracting  public  employment,  and 
wherever  he  was  management  of  financial  arrange 
ments  seemed  to  drift  naturally  to  him,  not  so  much 
by  express  assignment  as  on  the  principle  that  the 
willing  horse  draws  the  load.  Although  he  was 
elected  Superintendent  of  Finance  on  February  20, 
1781,  he  was  loath  to  accept  the  troublesome  office 
and  Hamilton's  advice  and  suggestions  can  hardly 
have  failed  to  influence  his  decision.  He  did  not 
shrink  from  responsibility,  but,  like  every  man  of 


88  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

his  calibre,  he  detested  ignorant  and  incompetent 
interference.  The  idea  with  which  the  Congressional 
politicians  started  out  was  apparently  that  it  would 
be  the  function  of  the  superintendent  to  be  a  sort  of 
managing  clerk  acting  under  a  committee  of  Con 
gress.  Morris  properly  insisted  that  "the  appoint 
ment  of  all  persons  who  are  to  act  in  my  office,  under 
the  same  roof,  or  in  immediate  connection  with  me, 
should  be  made  by  myself/'  after  agreement  with 
Congress  as  to  their  number  and  their  pay.  He 
also  was  firm  on  the  point  that  he  should  have  an 
absolute  power  of  dismissal.  Congress,  always  more 
intent  upon  its  patronage  than  anything  else,  was 
very  reluctant  to  grant  these  reasonable  demands, 
but  at  last  grudgingly  yielded,  and  on  May  14  Mor 
ris  formally  accepted  his  appointment.  In  all  these 
matters  Hamilton's  influence  was  steadily  exerted 
in  Morris's  favor. 

Hamilton's  scheme  of  a  national  bank,  as  then 
drawn  up,  has  been  criticised  by  experts  as  contain 
ing  some  of  the  financial  fallacies  of  the  age.  The 
treatise  supplies  internal  evidence  that  it  was  based 
upon  study  of  European  models,  and  it  is  stamped 
with  the  ideas  of  the  times.  As  Professor  Sumner 
has  justly  observed:  "It  is  the  statesmanship  of  it 
that  is  grand;  not  the  finance." 

The  quality  of  his  statesmanship  had  already 
been  more  brilliantly  revealed,  in  a  letter  of  Septem 
ber  3,  1780,  to  James  Duane,  a  New  York  member 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP  89 

of  Congress,  who  had  requested  Hamilton's  opinion 
as  to  the  way  to  correct  the  defects  of  the  govern 
ment.  Hamilton  criticised  the  organization  and 
the  behavior  of  Congress.  He  held  that  "the  man 
ner  in  which  Congress  was  appointed  would  war 
rant,  and  the  public  good  required,  that  they  should 
have  considered  themselves  as  vested  with  full 
power  to  preserve  the  republic  from  harm"  By  the 
phrase  he  italicized  he  avoided  discussion  of  the 
origin  and  extent  of  the  authority  intentionally 
granted  to  Congress,  consideration  of  which  would 
have  opened  a  subject  interminable  in  its  nature, 
as  has  since  often  been  shown.  He  went  to  the 
heart  of  the  matter  by  pointing  out  that  Congress 
had  in  fact  "done  many  of  the  highest  acts  of  sov 
ereignty,  which  were  always  cheerfully  submitted 
to:  the  declaration  of  independence,  the  declaration 
of  war,  the  levying  of  an  army,  creating  a  navy, 
emitting  money,  making  alliances  with  foreign  pow 
ers,  appointing  a  dictator,  etc."  But  Congress  had 
been  "timid  and  indecisive"  in  matters  auxiliary 
and  subordinate  to  the  sovereignty  they  had  actually 
assumed  and  exercised.  The  gist  of  Hamilton's  re 
marks  upon  this  point  is  that  by  failing  to  seize  the 
taxing  powers  they  had  sunk  into  a  state  of  helpless 
dependence  on  the  States.  "That  power  which 
holds  the  purse  strings  absolutely  must  rule."  Con 
federation  had  had  no  practical  result.  "The par 
ticular  States  have  no  further  attended  to  it  than 


90  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

as  it  suited  their  pretensions  and  convenience." 
But,  even  were  it  respected,  the  Confederation  was 
inadequate.  "It  is  neither  fit  for  war  or  peace." 
Hamilton  then  appealed  to  the  lessons  of  history  to 
show  that  a  government  cannot  maintain  itself  un 
less  it  can  act  directly  upon  its  citizenship  through 
its  own  police  power.  "The  idea  of  an  uncontrolla 
ble  sovereignty  in  each  State  over  its  internal  police 
will  defeat  the  other  powers  given  to  Congress  and 
make  our  union  feeble  and  precarious."  It  would 
be  even  more  so  than  the  league  of  the  Swiss  can 
tons,  which  had  been  maintained  through  ties  of 
union  due  to  special  circumstances.  "These  ties 
will  not  exist  in  America;  a  little  time  hence  some  of 
the  States  will  be  powerful  empires;  and  we  are  so 
remote  from  other  nations,  that  we  shall  have  all 
the  leisure  and  opportunity  we  can  wish  to  cut  each 
other's  throats."  The  time  came  when  this  grim 
anticipation  was  fulfilled,  through  the  constitutional 
defect  that  Hamilton  instanced.  It  took  a  civil  war 
to  destroy  State  pretensions  of  uncontrollable  sov 
ereignty. 

In  addition  to  being  subject  to  defect  of  power, 
Congress  was  addicted  to  misuse  of  power.  "Con 
gress  have  kept  the  power  too  much  in  their  own 
hands,  and  have  meddled  too  much  with  details  of 
every  sort.  Congress  is,  properly,  a  deliberative 
corps,  and  it  forgets  itself  when  it  attempts  to  play 
the  executive."  This  observation,  quite  as  applica- 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP    91 

ble  to  Congress  now  as  when  it  was  written,  he  ex 
plains  by  considerations  even  more  cogent  now  than 
then:  "It  is  impossible  such  a  body,  numerous  as  it 
is,  and  constantly  fluctuating,  can  ever  act  with  suffi 
cient  decision  or  with  system.  Two-thirds  of  the 
members,  one-half  the  time,  cannot  know  what  has 
gone  before  them,  or  what  connection  the  subject  in 
hand  has  to  what  has  been  transacted  on  former  oc 
casions.  The  members  who  have  been  more  per 
manent,  will  only  give  information  that  promotes 
the  side  they  espouse  in  the  present  case,  and  will  as 
often  mislead  as  enlighten.  The  variety  of  business 
must  distract,  and  the  proneness  of  every  assembly 
to  debate  must  at  all  times  delay. "  The  remedy, 
he  urged,  was  to  create  executive  departments,  each 
with  one  man  at  its  head.  "As  these  men  will  be, 
of  course,  at  all  times  under  the  direction  of  Con 
gress,  we  shall  blend  the  advantages  of  a  monarchy 
and  a  republic  in  our  constitution."  He  points  out 
that  this  would  not  lessen  the  importance  of  Con 
gress.  "They  would  have  precisely  the  same  rights 
and  powers  as  heretofore,  happily  disencumbered  of 
the  detail.  They  would  have  to  inspect  the  conduct 
of  their  ministers,  deliberate  upon  their  plans,  origi 
nate  others  for  the  public  good;  only  observing  this 
rule — that  they  ought  to  consult  their  ministers,  and 
get  all  the  information  and  advice  they  could  from 
them,  before  they  entered  into  any  new  measures,  or 
made  changes  in  the  old."  The  adoption  of  such  a 


92  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

system,  he  held,  "would  give  new  life  and  energy 
to  the  operations  of  the  government.  Business 
would  be  conducted  with  dispatch,  method  and  sys 
tem.  A  million  abuses  now  existing,  would  be  cor 
rected,  and  judicious  plans  would  be  formed  and 
executed  for  the  public  good." 

Government  of  this  nature  is  yet  to  be  introduced 
in  the  United  States,  and  the  characteristic  defects 
of  Congress  when  that  body  was  originally  formed 
have  been  perpetuated;  but  Hamilton's  plan  is  an 
exact  anticipation  of  what  has  been  effected  in  the 
organization  and  procedure  of  the  Congress  of  Swit 
zerland,  whose  model  was  arrived  at  by  correcting 
the  defects  of  the  American  Constitution  in  just  the 
way  that  Hamilton  recommended,  accomplishing 
just  those  results  of  economy  and  efficiency  which 
he  predicted.  The  most  democratic  country  in  the 
world  has  a  constitution  exactly  such  as  Hamilton 
proposed  for  the  United  States.  It  is  more  than 
resemblance;  it  is  identity,  although  arrived  at  inde 
pendently  by  Swiss  publicists,  forming  one  of  the 
most  interesting  parallels  in  history,  and  certainly 
the  most  complete. 

Proceeding  to  a  consideration  of  the  steps  to  be 
taken  to  accomplish  the  needed  improvements,  Ham 
ilton  observed  that  the  only  practical  alternative 
was  either  for  Congress  to  resume  and  exercise  sov 
ereign  authority  or  else  to  call  a  convention  of  the 
States  to  form  a  new  constitution.  The  first  plan 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP     93 

he  did  not  believe  to  be  really  available.  It  "will 
be  thought  too  bold  an  expedient  by  the  generality 
of  Congress;  and,  indeed,  their  practice  hitherto  has 
so  riveted  the  opinion  of  their  want  of  power,  that 
the  success  of  this  experiment  may  very  well  be 
doubted."  The  other  mode,  the  convention  plan, 
he  thought  was  practicable,  and  he  gave  this  account 
of  the  powers  that  should  be  granted  to  the  general 
government:  "Congress  should  have  complete  sov 
ereignty  in  all  that  relates  to  war,  peace,  trade, 
finance;  and  to  the  management  of  foreign  affairs; 
the  right  of  declaring  war;  of  raising  armies,  officer 
ing,  paying  them,  directing  their  motions  in  every 
respect;  of  equipping  fleets,  and  doing  the  same 
with  them;  of  building  fortifications,  arsenals,  mag 
azines,  etc.,  etc.;  of  making  peace  on  such  conditions 
as  they  think  proper;  of  regulating  trade,  determin 
ing  with  what  countries  it  shall  be  carried  on,  grant 
ing  indulgences;  laying  prohibitions  on  all  the  arti 
cles  of  export  or  import;  imposing  duties;  granting 
bounties  and  premiums  for  raising,  exporting  or  im 
porting,  and  applying  to  their  own  use  the  product 
of  these  duties — only  giving  credit  to  the  States  on 
which  they  are  raised  in  the  general  account  of  rev 
enues  and  expenses;  instituting  Admiralty,  Courts, 
etc.;  of  coining  money;  establishing  banks  on  such 
terms,  and  with  such  privileges  as  they  think  proper; 
appropriating  funds,  and  doing  whatever  else  relates 
to  the  operations  of  finance;  transacting  everything 


94  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

with  foreign  nations;  making  alliances,  offensive  and 
defensive,  treaties  of  commerce,  etc.,  etc." 

On  comparing  this  project  with  the  scheme  actu 
ally  introduced  by  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution, 
a  general  resemblance  will  be  noted,  but  some  im 
portant  differences  will  appear.  The  most  impor 
tant  is  that  Hamilton  reserved  to  the  States  a  field 
of  taxation  which  the  Constitution  opened  concur 
rently  to  the  national  government,  with  the  result 
that  the  field  has  been  so  extensively  occupied  as  to 
crowd  State  authority  out  of  it  to  an  extent  that 
leaves  it  little  available  for  State  use.  The  raising 
of  money  "by  internal  taxes/'  which  Hamilton  then 
thought  ought  to  be  reserved  to  State  authority,  is 
now  so  largely  a  federal  function  that  the  States 
have  been  practically  deprived  of  the  most  commo 
dious  and  lucrative  sources  of  revenue  in  that  field. 
State  apportionment  of  credit  for  revenue  raised 
from  duties  upon  exports  or  imports,  figured  in  Ham 
ilton's  scheme,  and  was  probably  meant  to  conciliate 
the  particularist  tendencies  then  so  powerful.  It  did 
not  find  a  place  in  the  Constitution.  Moreover,  the 
Hamilton  plan  confers  more  power  and  dignity  upon 
Congress  than  have  been  actually  realized  under  the 
Constitution,  but  this  has  been  due  more  to  the  char 
acter  of  political  development  under  the  Constitution 
than  to  the  language  of  the  Constitution  itself.  At 
present  Congress  by  no  means  has  complete  control 
over  the  particulars  mentioned  by  Hamilton;  but  the 


FIRST  ESSAYS  IN  STATESMANSHIP     95 

legal  basis  of  power  upon  which  Congress  acts  is  as 
ample  as  was  originally  that  of  the  British  Parlia 
ment,  and  the  actual  inferiority  of  Congress  is  to  be 
attributed  to  defects  in  the  way  in  which  its  consti 
tutional  authority  has  been  organized  and  applied. 
Its  lack  of  direct  contact  with  the  administration — a 
circumstance  not  provided  by  the  Constitution  but 
by  its  own  rules — is  the  principal  cause  of  its  inferi 
ority. 

The  most  remarkable  feature  of  the  Hamilton 
plan,  and  the  most  impressive  evidence  of  the  cool, 
dispassionate,  enlightened  character  of  his  statesman 
ship,  is  the  exalted  station  he  sought  to  provide  for 
Congress,  at  a  time  when  Congress  had  become  so 
corrupt  and  inefficient  that  the  sharpest  censures 
were  passed  upon  its  character.  The  usual  tendency 
is  to  take  power  away  where  it  has  been  abused, 
and  provide  new  securities  for  public  order  by  a  new 
distribution  of  authority  and  by  imposing  new 
checks,  limitations,  and  restraints.  This  process  has 
been  carried  out  in  American  State  constitutions 
until  they  form  as  great  a  labyrinth  of  particular 
agency  and  coordinate  powers  as  ever  existed  under 
the  feudal  system,  to  which  in  essence  American 
politics  are  a  reversion.  That  a  young  man  only 
twenty-three  years  of  age,  acting  in  circumstances 
whose  ordinary  effect  was  to  produce  deep  aversion, 
should  have  discerned  that  the  true  remedy  for  the 
misconduct  of  Congress  lay  in  enlarging  its  powers 


96  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

x  and  in  augmenting  its  responsibilities,  was  an  amaz 
ing  exhibition  of  piercing  insight,  no  parallel  for 
which  is  to  be  found  at  that  period  except  in  the 
writings  of  Edmund  Burke.  Hamilton  anticipated 
the  means  by  which  democracy  has  really  been 
established,  wherever  that  result  has  been  actu 
ally  attained.  It  has  not  yet  been  attained  in  the 
United  States  because  those  means  have  not  yet 
been  employed.  The  characteristic  principle  of 
feudalism — fractional  sovereignty — still  rules  Ameri 
can  politics,  and  responsible  government  is  just  be 
ginning  to  appear  as  the  proper  goal  of  effort.  As 
democratic  principles  of  government  advance  in  the 
United  States,  the  more  wonderful  will  it  appear  that 
in  the  darkest  night  there  was  a  youthful  statesman 
who  had  the  vision  of  a  day  so  remote  that  it  has 
still  to  dawn  in  its  perfect  power  and  beauty. 


CHAPTER  VIII 
ALLIANCE  WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY 

GRAYDON,  in  his  Memoirs,  gives  a  striking  picture 
of  the  social  position  held  by  Hamilton.  Graydon, 
who  had  been  a  prisoner  of  war  for  eight  months  in 
the  hands  of  the  British,  sought  the  American  camp, 
then  at  Morristown,  as  soon  as  he  was  released,  and 
was  entertained  at  Washington's  quarters.  "Here, 
for  the  first  time,"  Graydon  relates,  "I  had  the 
pleasure  of  knowing  Colonel  Hamilton.  He  pre 
sided  at  the  General's  table,  where  we  dined;  and  in 
a  large  company  hi  which  there  were  several  ladies, 
among  whom  I  recollect  one  or  two  of  the  Miss  Liv 
ingstons  and  a  Miss  Brown,  he  acquitted  himself 
with  an  ease,  propriety  and  vivacity,  which  gave  me 
the  most  favorable  impression  of  his  talents  and 
accomplishments — talents,  it  is  true,  which  did  not 
indicate  the  solid  abilities  his  subsequent  career  has 
unfolded,  but  which  announced  a  brilliancy  which 
might  adorn  the  most  polished  circles  of  society." 

The  officers  about  Washington  were  of  his  own 
selection,  and  the  contrast  between  the  tone  of  man 
ners  at  headquarters  and  that  which  was  usually 
displayed  by  officers  of  the  class  who  got  their 
positions  through  Congressional  patronage,  was 

97 


98  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

such  as  ladies  would  be  quick  to  recognize.  The 
character  of  many  holders  of  commissions  was  such 
as  to  give  point  to  General  Con  way's  query:  "Did 
Congress  see  you  before  they  appointed  you  ?  "  The 
social  distinction  of  the  Washington  circle  was  aug 
mented  in  1777  by  the  arrival  of  the  Marquis  de 
Lafayette  and  other  French  officers.  Hamilton's 
familiar  knowledge  of  French  facilitated  intimacies 
that  had  an  important  bearing  on  the  issues  of  the 
war.  At  the  time  Lafayette  joined  the  army  Wash 
ington  was  under  a  cloud,  and  an  intrigue  to  displace 
him  was  under  way.  Lafayette  wrote  home  that 
Washington's  "best  friends,  Greene,  Hamilton  and 
Knox,  were  decried."  Attempts  were  made  to  win 
Lafayette  to  the  side  of  the  Congressional  cabal,  but 
they  did  not  move  him.  He  wrote:  "Attached  to 
the  General,  and  still  more  to  the  cause,  I  did  not 
hesitate,  but  held  to  him  whose  ruin  was  antici 
pated." 

This  was  really  the  turning-point  of  the  Revolu 
tionary  struggle.  It  was  saved  by  the  French  alli 
ance  after  it  had  been  ruined  by  the  behavior  of 
Congress.  The  relations  into  which  Hamilton  easily 
and  naturally  entered  with  the  French  officers,  pro 
viding  them  with  a  source  of  clear  and  accurate  in 
formation,  exerted  an  influence  of  inestimable  value 
at  this  crisis.  At  the  same  time  it  identified  Ham 
ilton  with  coteries  possessing  the  social  brilliancy  and 
distinction  always  attractive  to  women,  and  pro- 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY  99 

vided  for  him  friendships  that  were  sometimes  at 
tended  by  embarrassments.  To  one  lady,  who  had 
applied  in  behalf  of  friends  who  wanted  to  pass 
through  the  American  lines,  Hamilton  softened  his 
refusal  by  writing  in  a  style  of  high-flown  gallantry, 
concluding  with  the  remark:  "Trifling  apart,  there 
is  nothing  would  give  me  greater  pleasure  than  to 
have  been  able  to  serve  Miss  Livingston  and  her 
friends  on  this  occasion,  but  circumstances  really 
d'd  not  permit  it." 

In  December,  1779,  Hamilton  wrote  a  letter  to  his 
intimate  friend,  John  Laurens,  in  which,  after  some 
banter  on  Laurens's  personal  affairs  he  turns  to  his 
own,  saying:  "And  now,  my  dear,  as  we  are  upon 
the  subject  of  wife,  I  empower  and  command  you  to 
get  me  one  in  Carolina.  Such  a  wife  as  I  want  will, 
I  know,  be  difficult  to  be  found,  but  if  you  succeed, 
it  will  be  the  stronger  proof  of  your  zeal  and  dex 
terity.  Take  her  description — she  must  be  young, 
handsome  (I  lay  most  stress  upon  a  good  shape), 
sensible  (a  little  learning  will  do),  well  bred  (but  she 
must  have  an  aversion  to  the  word  ton),  chaste  and 
tender  (I  am  an  enthusiast  in  my  notions  of  fidelity 
and  fondness),  of  some  good  nature,  a  great  deal  of 
generosity  (she  must  neither  love  money  nor  scold 
ing,  for  I  dislike  equally  a  termagant  and  an  econ 
omist).  In  politics  I  am  indifferent  what  side  she 
may  be  of.  I  think  I  have  arguments  that  will 
easily  convert  her  to  mine.  As  to  religion  a  moder- 


100  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ate  stock  will  satisfy  me.  She  must  believe  in  God 
and  hate  a  saint." 

In  the  succeeding  portion  of  the  letter  Hamilton 
turns  it  all  off  as  a  joke.  "  I  am  ready  to  ask  myself 
what  could  have  put  it  into  my  head  to  hazard  this 
jeu  de  folie.  Do  I  want  a  wife?  No.  I  have 
plagues  enough  without  desiring  to  add  to  the  num 
ber  that  greatest  of  all.  .  .  ." 

At  that  time  he  had  already  met  the  lady  who 
was  to  become  his  wife,  although  his  relations  with 
her  had  not  then  advanced  beyond  bare  acquain 
tance.  When  Hamilton  was  sent  by  Washington  on 
a  mission  to  General  Gates  in  the  autumn  of  1777, 
he  visited  the  Schuyler  mansion  at  Albany,  and 
among  those  to  whom  he  was  introduced  was  Gen 
eral  Schuyler's  second  daughter,  Elizabeth,  then 
just  turned  twenty.  Colonel  Tench  Tilghman,  who 
had  had  that  honor  some  two  years  before,  described 
her  as  "a  brunette  with  the  most  good-natured, 
dark,  lovely  eyes  that  I  ever  saw,  which  threw  a 
beam  of  good  humor  and  benevolence  over  her  en 
tire  countenance. "  He  remarked:  "I  was  prepos 
sessed  in  favor  of  this  young  lady  the  moment  I  saw 
her."  If  Hamilton  was  similarly  impressed  on  his 
first  meeting,  there  is  no  record  of  it,  and  his  letter 
of  1779  to  Laurens  does  not  suggest  that  his  fancy 
had  then  been  caught  by  any  one.  The  circum 
stances  of  Hamilton's  visit  in  1777  were  such  as  to 
give  anxious  occupation  to  his  thoughts.  Washing- 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY         101 

ton's  authority  as  Commander-in-chief  was  being 
undermined  and  Gates's  attitude  was  disrespectful. 
It  is  quite  possible  that  when  he  then  visited  General 
Schuyler  to  confer  on  the  situation,  the  casual  intro 
duction  he  received  to  the  daughter  made  no  im 
pression  on  him  at  the  time.  The  young  lady  was, 
of  course,  differently  circumstanced,  and  those  bright 
eyes  of  hers  could  hardly  have  failed  to  note  Hamil 
ton's  handsome  appearance  and  polished  manners. 
Philip  Schuyler,  born  in  1733,  inherited  a  large 
estate  from  his  father,  and  he  was  eminent  and 
active  in  provincial  affairs  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
Revolution.  Like  Washington  himself,  Schuyler  was 
a  representative  of  the  landed  gentry  whose  adhe 
sion  to  the  Revolutionary  movement  gave  to  it  in 
fluence  and  respectability  without  which  it  would 
probably  have  collapsed.  He  belonged  to  one  of 
the  great  patroon  families  of  New  York,  allied  by 
ties  of  close  kinship  to  the  Van  Cortlandts  and  the 
Van  Rensselaers.  When  men  of  the  lawyer-poli 
tician  type  obtained  the  ascendancy  in  Congress, 
Schuyler  became  a  mark  for  their  intrigues.  He 
was  the  general  in  command  of  the  forces  collected 
to  repel  Burgoyne's  invasion,  and,  like  Washington 
at  the  same  period,  he  had  all  he  could  do  in  main 
taining  the  show  of  an  armed  force,  lack  of  order, 
discipline,  and  equipment  precluding  any  operation 
more  important  than  an  occasional  foray.  He  be 
haved  with  fine  magnanimity  when  Congress  super- 


HAMILTON 


seded  him  in  favor  of  Gates,  who  arrived  in  time  to 
take  credit  for  the  battle  of  Saratoga,  the  fruit  of 
Schuyler's  management.  At  the  time  of  Hamilton's 
mission  Congress  was  inclined  to  supersede  Wash 
ington  also,  and  did,  in  fact,  pass  an  order  prohibit 
ing  him  from  exercising  any  considerable  authority 
in  the  northern  department  without  first  consulting 
General  Gates  and  Governor  Clinton.  Schuyler  now 
opportunely  entered  Congress  as  a  delegate  from 
New  York,  and  his  presence  in  that  body  exerted  a 
strong  influence  toward  the  preservation  of  Wash 
ington's  authority  and  toward  improvement  in  the 
behavior  of  Congress. 

It  was  at  this  point  that  intimacy  between  Hamil 
ton  and  the  Schuyler  family  really  began.  During 
the  winter  and  spring  of  1779-80,  when  Washing 
ton's  headquarters  were  at  Morristown,  General 
Schuyler  took  a  house  there  for  his  family.  Mrs. 
Washington  and  the  wives  of  several  officers  were 
also  living  in  Morristown,  so  that  an  agreeable 
society  was  formed.  Hamilton  was  brought  into 
intimate  relations  with  it  as  Washington's  secretary, 
and  his  wit,  vivacity,  and  good-breeding  inspired 
liking  and  esteem. 

Schuyler  was  very  intimate  with  Washington. 
They  were  men  of  the  same  class,  nearly  of  the  same 
age,  with  like  habits  of  thought  and  standards  of 
conduct.  Washington  warmly  sympathized  with 
Schuyler  and  deplored  the  shabby  treatment  he  had 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY         103 

experienced  from  Congress.  Schuyler  was  active 
and  influential  in  his  support  of  Washington.  His 
position  as  one  of  the  New  York  patroons  made  it 
impossible  for  his  enemies  to  divest  him  of  political 
importance.  He  had  his  own  intelligence  depart 
ment,  which  included  even  agents  in  Canada,  and 
all  his  resources  were  at  Washington's  service.  His 
presence  in  Congress  in  1780  was  of  inestimable 
value  to  Washington,  as  Schuyler  was  able  to  secure 
the  appointment  of  a  committee  of  three,  with  him 
self  at  the  head,  to  effect  changes  and  reforms  in  the 
army  much  desired  by  Washington. 

With.  Schuyler  himself  Hamilton  now  began  an 
intimacy  that  lasted  the  rest  of  his  life.  Schuyler 
was  then  forty-seven;  Hamilton  was  twenty-three. 
Schuyler's  large  experience  in  public  affairs  and  in 
timate  knowledge  of  all  the  personal  springs  of 
action  probably  served  as  a  valuable  source  of  in 
formation  to  Hamilton.  Elizabeth  Schuyler  was 
with  her  father  at  Morristown,  and  Hamilton  was 
soon  in  love  with  her.  They  were  both  born  in  the 
same  year,  but  Hamilton  was  older  by  seven  months. 
It  is  an  astonishing  proof  of  the  force  of  Hamilton's 
vocation  for  statesmanship  that  at  the  very  time  he 
was  courting  his  sweetheart  he  produced  the  remark 
able  papers  described  in  the  preceding  chapter.  An 
incident  of  that  period  preserved  by  tradition  shows 
that  Hamilton  was  not  wholly  exempt  from  dis 
turbance  by  love's  sweet  fever.  Once  after  spending 


104  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

an  evening  with  Miss  Schuyler  his  thoughts  were  so 
full  of  her  that  on  returning  to  his  quarters  in  camp 
he  could  not  remember  the  countersign,  and  was 
held  back  by  the  sentinel  until  a  friend  arrived  who 
could  give  Hamilton  the  word. 

Hamilton's  passion  for  Elizabeth  Schuyler  was 
described  by  him  in  a  letter  to  one  of  her  sisters — 
probably  Mrs.  Angelica  Church,  written  sometime 
during  1780.  It  is  written  in  the  high-flown  style 
of  the  period,  that  seemed  to  go  naturally  in  com 
pany  with  wigs,  satin  knee-breeches,  lace  ruffs,  tow 
ering  coiffure,  trailing  silk  gowns,  and  stately  man 
ners,  but  which  is  much  too  pretentious  for  modern 
taste.  Availing  himself  of  a  commission  from  Miss 
Schuyler  to  forward  a  letter  to  her  sister,  Hamilton 
wrote:  "I  venture  to  tell  you  in  confidence,  that  by 
some  odd  contrivance  or  other  your  sister  has  found 
out  the  secret  of  interesting  me  in  everything  that 
concerns  her;  and  though  I  have  not  the  happiness 
of  a  personal  acquaintance  with  you,  I  have  had  the 
good  fortune  to  see  several  very  pretty  pictures  of 
your  person  and  mind  which  have  inspired  me  with 
a  more  than  common  partiality  for  both." 

He  then  offers  it  as  proof  of  the  good  opinion  he 
has  formed  that  he  may  venture  thus  to  introduce 
himself  and  even  make  her  his  confidant: 

Phlegmatists  may  say  I  take  too  great  a  license  at  first 
setting  out,  and  witlings  may  sneer  and  wonder  how  a 
man  the  least  acquainted  with  the  world  should  show  so 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY         105 

great  facility  in  his  confidence — to  a  lady.  But  the  idea 
I  have  formed  of  your  character  places  it  in  my  estima 
tion  above  the  insipid  maxims  of  the  former  or  the  ill- 
natured  jibes  of  the  latter. 

I  have  already  confessed  the  influence  your  sister  has 
gained  over  me — yet  notwithstanding  this,  I  have  some 
things  of  a  very  serious  and  heinous  nature  to  lay  to  her 
charge. — She  is  most  unmercifully  handsome  and  so  per 
verse  that  she  has  none  of  those  pretty  affectations" which 
are  the  prerogatives  of  beauty.  Her  good  sense  is  desti 
tute  of  that  happy  mixture  of  vanity  and  ostentation 
which  would  make  it  conspicuous  to  the  whole  tribe  of 
fools  and  foplings  as  well  as  to  men  of  understanding  so 
that  as  the  matter  now  stands  it  is  little  known  beyond 
the  circle  of  these. — She  has  good  nature,  affability  and 
vivacity  unembellished  with  that  charming  frivolousness 
which  is  justly  deemed  one  of  the  principal  accomplish 
ments  of  a  belle.  In  short,  she  is  so  strange  a  creature, 
that  she  possesses  all  the  beauties,  virtues  and  graces  of 
her  sex  without  any  of  those  amiable  defects  which  from 
their  general  prevalence  are  esteemed  by  connoisseurs 
necessary  shades  in  the  character  of  a  fine  woman.  The 
most  determined  adversaries  of  Hymen  can  find  in  her  no 
pretext  for  their  hostility,  and  there  are  several  of  my 
friends,  philosophers,  who  railed  at  love  as  a  weakness, 
men  of  the  world  who  laughed  at  it  as  a  phantasie,  whom 
she  has  presumptuously  and  daringly  compelled  to  ac 
knowledge  its  power  and  surrender  at  discretion.  I  can 
the  better  assert  the  truth  of  this,  as  I  am  myself  of  the 
number.  She  has  had  the  address  to  overset  all  the  wise 
resolutions  I  had  been  framing  for  more  than  four  years 
past,  and  from  a  rational  sort  of  being  and  a  professed 
contemner  of  Cupid  has  in  a  trice  metamorphosed  me 
into  the  veriest  inamorato  your  perhaps  .  .  . 


106  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Here  there  is  a  portion  of  the  manuscript  that 
is  quite  illegible,  and,  although  what  follows  is 
plain  enough,  it  is  all  in  the  same  Grandisonian 
style,  of  which  a  sufficient  sample  has  been  given. 
It  was  quite  the  fashion  then,  and  English  liter 
ature  affords  many  models  of  that  sort  of  thing. 
The  Marquis  de  Chastellux,  who  visited  Washing 
ton's  headquarters  in  this  year,  and  published 
an  account  of  his  American  travels,  remarked 
upon  the  frequent  toasting  of  sweethearts  and  the 
elaborate  gallantries  at  formal  dinners.  It  should 
be  noted  that  Hamilton's  employment  of  this  style 
in  writing  to  Mrs.  Church  had  a  defensive  use.  If 
nothing  had  come  of  the  affair  it  might  have  been 
passed  off  as  merely  the  language  of  compliment. 
This  affected  style  was  dropped  forthwith  as  soon 
as  Hamilton  was  accepted  as  Miss  Schuyler's  affi 
anced,  and  his  letters  thereafter  are  simple,  direct, 
sincere,  manly,  and  tender,  almost  devoid  of  per 
sonal  compliment  except  that  highest  sort  which  is 
implied  by  the  character  of  the  matter.  The  posi 
tion  now  tacitly  assigned  to  her  is  that  of  a  woman 
of  good  sense  and  intelligence,  whose  interest  in 
public  affairs  is  as  keen  as  Hamilton's  own.  Under 
date  of  September  6,  1780,  Hamilton  tells  her  of 
Gates's  defeat  in  South  Carolina,  and  of  his  flight, 
leaving  "his  troops  to  take  care  of  themselves,  and 
get  out  of  the  scrape  as  well  as  they  could."  After 
referring  to  the  general  dismay  occasioned  by  this 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY         107 

reverse,  Hamilton's  sanguine  disposition  crops  out 
in  the  remark:  "This  misfortune  affects  me  less  than 
others,  because  it  is  not  in  my  temper  to  repine  at 
evils  that  are  past,  but  to  endeavor  to  draw  good 
out  of  them,  and  because  I  think  our  safety  depends 
on  a  total  change  of  system,  and  this  change  of 
system  will  only  be  produced  by  misfortune." 

Arnold's  treason  occurred  during  the  period  of 
Hamilton's  courtship,  and  as  soon  as  the  news  was 
received  Hamilton  was  sent  to  Verplanck's  Point  to 
try  to  intercept  Arnold;  but  on  his  arrival  he  found 
that  Arnold,  always  rapid  and  energetic  in  his 
movements,  had  already  made  good  his  escape  and 
was  then  safe  on  board  the  Vulture,  an  English 
sloop-of-war.  Hamilton  at  once  took  measures  for 
the  protection  of  West  Point,  taking  upon  himself 
to  issue  instructions,  concerning  which  he  at  once 
wrote  to  Washington:  "I  hope  your  Excellency  will 
approve  these  steps,  as  there  may  be  no  time  to  be 
lost."  On  the  same  day,  September  25,  1780,  he 
wrote  to  Miss  Schuyler,  giving  her  an  account  of 
the  affair  which  overflows  with  kindness  and  mag 
nanimity  with  respect  to  Mrs.  Arnold.  He  said: 

I  went  in  pursuit  of  him  but  was  much  too  late;  and 
could  hardly  regret  the  disappointment,  when,  on  my 
return,  I  saw  an  amiable  woman,  frantic  with  distress  for 
the  loss  of  a  husband  she  tenderly  loved;  a  traitor  to  his 
country  and  to  his  fame;  a  disgrace  to  his  connections: 
it  was  the  most  affecting  scene  I  ever  was  witness  to.  ... 


108  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

All  the  sweetness  of  beauty,  all  the  loveliness  of  inno 
cence,  all  the  tenderness  of  a  wife,  and  all  the  fondness 
of  a  mother  showed  themselves  in  her  appearance  and 
conduct.  .  .  .  This  morning  she  is  more  composed.  I 
paid  her  a  visit,  and  endeavored  to  soothe  her  by  every 
method  in  my  power,  though  you  may  imagine  she  is  not 
easily  to  be  consoled. 

In  his  dealings  with  Major  Andre*,  the  unfortunate 
British  officer  whose  transactions  with  Arnold 
brought  him  into  the  American  lines  and  who  was 
hanged  as  a  spy,  Hamilton  displayed  military  se 
verity  coupled  with  refined  and  chivalrous  personal 
consideration.  Writing  to  Miss  Schuyler  on  October 
2,  1780,  he  said: 

Poor  Andre  suffers  to-day.  Everything  that  is  ami 
able  in  virtue,  in  fortitude,  in  delicate  sentiment,  pleads 
for  him;  but  hard-hearted  policy  calls  for  a  sacrifice.  He 
must  die. — I  send  you  my  account  of  Arnold's  affair;  and 
to  justify  myself  to  your  sentiments,  I  must  inform  you 
that  I  urged  a  compliance  with  Andre's  request  to  be 
shot;  and  I  do  not  think  it  would  have  had  an  ill  effect; 
but  some  people  are  only  sensible  to  motives  of  policy, 
and  sometimes  from  a  narrow  disposition,  mistake  it. 
When  Andre's  tale  comes  to  be  told,  and  present  resent 
ment  is  over,  the  refusing  him  the  privilege  of  choosing 
the  manner  of  his  death  will  be  branded  with  too  much 
obstinacy. 

It  was  proposed  to  me  to  suggest  to  him  the  idea  of  an 
exchange  for  Arnold;  but  I  knew  I  should  have  forfeited 
his  esteem  by  doing  it,  and  therefore  declined  it.  As  a 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY         109 

man  of  honor,  he  could  but  reject  it,  and  I  would  not  for 
the  world  have  proposed  to  him  a  thing  which  must  have 
placed  me  in  the  unamiable  light  of  supposing  him  capa 
ble  of  meanness,  or  of  not  feeling  myself  the  impropriety 
of  the  measure.  I  confess  to  you  I  had  the  weakness  to 
value  the  esteem  of  a  dying  man,  because  I  reverenced 
his  merit. 


The  account  of  Arnold's  affair  to  which  he  refers 
was  probably  the  same  as  that  which  he  sent  to  his 
friend,  Colonel  John  Laurens,  the  same  month.  It 
is  written  with  great  literary  skill,  and  the  account 
it  gives  of  the  execution  of  Andre  is  deeply  affecting 
from  the  simplicity  and  completeness  with  which  it 
narrates  the  incidents.  Hamilton's  comments  upon 
Andre's  personal  characteristics  and  behavior  are 
marked  throughout  by  generosity  and  high-mind- 
edness. 

Mingled  with  these  letters  between  a  statesman 
and  a  gentlewoman  properly  interested  in  public 
affairs  by  her  social  station,  were,  of  course,  other 
letters  in  which  there  was  the  ardent  outpouring  of 
a  lover's  heart.  Among  the  few  letters  of  this  other 
type  that  have  been  preserved  is  one  that  is  undated 
but  which  from  its  allusions  to  events  may  be  safely 
assigned  to  October,  1780.  In  it  Hamilton  wrote: 

I  have  told  you  and  I  told  you  truly  that  I  love  you 
too  much.  You  engross  my  thoughts  too  entirely  to  allow 
me  to  think  of  anything  else.  You  not  only  employ  my 


110  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

mind  all  day,  but  you  intrude  on  my  sleep.  I  meet  you 
in  every  dream  and  when  I  wake  I  cannot  close  my  eyes 
again  for  ruminating  on  your  sweetness.  'Tis  a  pretty 
story  indeed  that  I  am  to  be  thus  monopolized  by  a  little 
nut  brown  maid  like  you,  and  from  a  soldier  metamorphosed 
into  a  puny  lover.  I  believe  in  my  soul  you  are  an  en 
chantress;  but  I  have  tried  in  vain,  if  not  to  break,  at 
least  to  weaken  the  charm,  and  you  maintain  your  em 
pire  in  spite  of  all  my  efforts,  and  after  every  new  one  I 
make  to  withdraw  myself  from  my  allegiance,  my  partial 
heart  still  returns  and  clings  to  you  with  increased  attach 
ment.  To  drop  figures,  my  lovely  girl,  you  become  dearer 
to  me  every  moment. 

From  other  portions  of  this  letter  it  appears  that 
they  were  arranging  for  their  marriage.  He  speaks 
of  the  difficulties  he  is  having  in  getting  his  leave 
from  headquarters;  owing  to  the  absence  of  other 
members  of  Washington's  staff,  but  he  declares:  "I 
will  riot  be  delayed  beyond  November."  He  brings 
up  the  question  of  dress.  "You  will  laugh  at  me 
for  consulting  you  about  such  a  trifle,  but  I  want  to 
know  whether  you  would  prefer  my  receiving  the 
nuptial  benediction  in  my  uniform  or  in  a  different 
habit.  It  will  be  just  as  you  please,  so  consult  your 
whim  and  what  you  think  most  consistent  with 
propriety. " 

Of  course,  like  all  lovers  with  power  to  turn  a 
phrase,  Hamilton  wrote  verses  to  his  sweetheart. 
Some  experiments  in  that  line  are  also  reported  of 
him  in  his  student  days,  but  the  little  known  of 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY         111 

them  suggests  he  was  too  much  the  exact  thinker  to 
soar  freely  in  flights  of  poetic  fancy.  Naturally,  his 
efforts  were  liked  by  his  sweetheart.  She  lived  to 
be  ninety-seven,  and  when  she  died,  in  a  tiny  bag 
hanging  from  her  neck  were  found  these  verses 
written  by  Hamilton: 

ANSWER    TO    THE    INQUIRY    WHY    I    SIGHED 

"Before  no  mortal  ever  knew 
A  love  like  mine  so  tender — true — 
Completely  wretched — you  away 
And  but  half  blessed  e'en  while  you  stay. 

"If  present  love  [illegible]  face 
Deny  you  to  my  fond  embrace 
No  joy  unmixed  my  bosom  warms 
But  when  my  angel's  in  my  arms." 

The  exact  date  of  Hamilton's  marriage  has  not 
been  preserved,  but  it  is  supposed  to  have  taken 
place  in  December,  1780.  If  so,  it  must  have  been 
early  in  that  month.  Under  date  of  December 
9  he  wrote  to  General  Washington  from  Albany 
on  army  business  there,  and  in  ending  his  letter 
remarked:  "Mrs.  Hamilton  presents  her  respectful 
compliments  to  Mrs.  Washington  and  yourself. 
After  the  holidays  we  shall  be  at  headquarters." 
Remembering  Hamilton's  declaration  that  he  would 
"not  be  de  ayed  beyond  November,"  and  consider 
ing  the  determination  with  which  he  pursued  his 


112  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

objects,  it  seems  a  permissible  conjecture  that  the 
marriage  really  took  place  in  the  latter  part  of  No 
vember,  and  this  supposition  tallies  very  well  with 
the  tenor  of  the  letter  of  December  9.  If  the  wed 
ding  had  just  taken  place,  it  seems  unlikely  that 
Hamilton  would  already  be  so  occupied  with  army 
business  at  Albany  as  that  letter  indicates. 

At  any  rate,  it  is  certain  that  the  wedding  was 
celebrated  in  the  Schuyler  family  mansion  at  Albany, 
a  stately  building  of  yellow  brick,  with  every 
thing  upon  an  ample  scale.  The  main  hall,  entered 
through  the  handsome  colonial  doorway,  was  sixty 
feet  long.  The  drawing-room,  in  which  presumably 
the  wedding  took  place,  was  spacious  and  ornate, 
with  deep  window-seats  and  broad  mantels  hand 
somely  carved.  General  Schuyler  had  given  cordial 
approval  to  Hamilton's  suit,  and,  although  details 
are  lacking,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  wedding 
was  a  fine  affair.  It  is  known  that  McHenry,  of 
Washington's  staff,  was  at  the  wedding,  for  verses 
he  wrote  on  the  occasion  have  been  preserved.  In 
them  the  bridegroom  figures  as  "dear  Ham,"  and 
in  thus  trimming  the  name  to  suit  the  metre  the 
versifier  made  it  a  rather  grotesque  companion  to 
the  classic  gods  and  nymphs  he  introduced. 

Hamilton's  honeymoon  was  necessarily  brief,  and 
shortly  thereafter  he  was  again  at  work.  His  elab 
orate  memorandum  upon  the  establishment  of  a 
nat  onal  bank,  sent  to  Robert  Morris,  must  have 


WITH  A  PATROON  FAMILY         113 

been  drafted  within  a  few  months  after  his  mar 
riage.  Devotion  to  public  affairs  was  the  ruling 
passion  of  his  life,  but  for  the  rest  of  his  life  he  now 
had  a  helpmate  the  stanchness  of  whose  devotion 
could  bear  any  test,  even  such  as  came  from  folly 
and  wickedness  in  Hamilton  himself.  Her  nature  is 
exactly  characterized  by  Robert  Louis  Stevenson's 
lines: 

"Honor,  anger,  valor,  fire; 
A  love  that  life  could  never  tire, 

Death  quench  or  evil  stir, 
The  mighty  Master 
Gave  to  her." 


CHAPTER  IX 
A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON 

SHORTLY  after  his  marriage  Hamilton  had  a  tiff  with 
Washington  that  was  really  a  small  affair  in  itself, 
but  he  made  so  much  of  it  that  nothing  would  satisfy 
him  short  of  leaving  Washington's  staff.  The  fol 
lowing  is  his  own  account  of  it,  in  a  letter  of  Febru 
ary  18,  1781,  to  General  Schuyler: 

I  am  no  longer  a  member  of  the  General's  family.  This 
information  will  surprise  you,  and  the  manner  of  the 
change  will  surprise  you  more.  Two  days  ago,  the  Gen 
eral  and  I  passed  each  other  on  the  stairs.  He  told  me 
he  wanted  to  speak  to  me.  I  answered  that  I  would  wait 
upon  him  immediately.  I  went  belowr  and  delivered  to 
Mr.  Tilghman  a  letter  to  be  sent  to  the  commissary,  con 
taining  an  order  of  a  pressing  and  interesting  nature. 

Returning  to  the  General,  I  was  stopped  on  the  way 
by  the  Marquis  de  La  Fayette,  and  we  conversed  together 
about  a  minute  on  a  matter  of  business.  He  can  testify 
how  impatient  I  was  to  get  back,  and  that  I  left  him  in  a 
manner  which,  but  for  our  intimacy,  would  have  been 
more  than  abrupt.  Instead  of  finding  the  General,  as  is 
usual,  in  his  room,  I  met  him  at  the  head  of  the  stairs, 
where,  accosting  me  in  an  angry  tone,  "Colonel  Hamil 
ton,"  said  he,  "you  have  kept  me  waiting  at  the  head  of 

114 


A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON     115 

the  stairs  these  ten  minutes.  I  must  tell  you,  sir,  you 
treat  me  with  disrespect."  I  replied,  without  petulancy, 
but  with  decision:  "I  am  not  conscious  of  it,  sir;  but 
since  you  have  thought  it  necessary  to  tell  me  so,  we 
part."  "Very  well,  sir,"  said  he,  "if  it  be  your  choice," 
or  something  to  this  effect,  and  we  separated.  I  sin 
cerely  believe  my  absence,  which  gave  so  much  umbrage, 
did  not  last  two  minutes. 

In  less  than  an  hour  after,  Tilghman  came  to  me  in  the 
General's  name,  assuring  me  of  his  great  confidence  in  my 
abilities,  integrity,  usefulness,  etc.,  and  of  his  desire,  in  a 
candid  conversation,  to  heal  a  difference  which  could  not 
have  happened  but  in  a  moment  of  passion.  I  requested 
Mr.  Tilghman  to  tell  him — 1st.  That  I  had  taken  my 
resolution  in  a  manner  not  to  be  revoked.  2nd.  That,  as 
a  conversation  could  serve  no  other  purpose  than  to  pro 
duce  explanations,  mutually  disagreeable,  though  I  cer 
tainly  would  not  refuse  an  interview  if  he  desired  it,  yet 
I  would  be  happy  if  he  would  permit  me  to  decline  it.  3d. 
That,  though  determined  to  leave  the  family,  the  same 
principles  which  had  kept  me  so  long  in  it  would  continue 
to  direct  my  conduct  towards  him  when  out  of  it.  4th. 
That,  however,  I  did  not  wish  to  distress  him,  or  the  pub 
lic  business,  by  quitting  him  before  he  could  derive  other 
assistance  by  the  return  of  some  of  the  gentlemen  who 
were  absent.  5th.  And  that,  in  the  meantime,  it  de 
pended  on  him  to  let  our  behavior  to  each  other  be  the 
same  as  if  nothing  had  happened.  He  consented  to  de 
cline  the  conversation,  and  thanked  me  for  my  offer  of 
continuing  my  aid  in  the  manner  I  had  mentioned. 

I  have  given  you  so  particular  a  detail  of  our  difference 
from  the  desire  I  have  to  justify  myself  in  your  opinion. 
Perhaps  you  may  think  I  was  precipitate  in  rejecting  the 
overture  made  by  the  General  to  an  accommodation.  I 


116  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

assure  you,  my  dear  sir,  it  was  not  the  effect  of  resent 
ment;  it  was  the  deliberate  result  of  maxims  I  had  long 
formed  for  the  government  of  my  own  conduct. 

I  always  disliked  the  office  of  an  aide-de-camp  as  having 
in  it  a  kind  of  personal  dependence.  I  refused  to  serve 
in  this  capacity  with  two  major-generals  at  an  early 
period  of  the  war.  Infected,  however,  with  the  enthu 
siasm  of  the  times,  an  idea  of  the  General's  character 
which  experience  taught  me  to  be  unfounded,  overcame 
my  scruples,  and  induced  me  to  accept  his  invitation  to 
enter  into  his  family.  It  was  not  long  before  I  discovered 
he  was  neither  remarkable  for  delicacy  nor  good  temper, 
which  revived  my  former  aversion  to  the  station  in  which 
I  was  acting,  and  it  has  been  increasing  ever  since.  It  has 
been  often  with  great  difficulty  that  I  have  prevailed 
upon  myself  not  to  renounce  it;  but  while,  from  motives 
of  public  utility,  I  was  doing  violence  to  my  feelings,  I 
was  always  determined,  if  there  should  ever  happen  a 
breach  between  us,  never  to  consent  to  an  accommoda 
tion.  I  was  persuaded  that  when  once  that  nice  bar 
rier,  which  marked  the  boundaries  of  what  we  owed  to 
each  other,  should  be  thrown  down,  it  might  be  propped 
again,  but  could  never  be  restored. 

I  resolved,  whenever  it  should  happen,  not  to  be  in  the 
wrong.  I  was  convinced  the  concessions  the  General 
might  make  would  be  dictated  by  his  interest,  and  that 
his  self-love  would  never  forgive  me  for  what  it  would 
regard  as  a  humiliation. 

I  believe  you  know  the  place  I  held  in  the  General's 
confidence  and  counsels,  which  will  make  it  the  more  ex 
traordinary  to  you  to  learn  that  for  three  years  past  I 
have  felt  no  friendship  for  him  and  have  professed  none. 
The  truth  is,  our  dispositions  are  the  opposites  of  each 
other,  and  the  pride  of  my  temper  would  not  suffer  me 


A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON     117 

to  profess  what  I  did  not  feel.  Indeed,  when  advances 
of  this  kind  have  been  made  to  me  on  his  part,  they  were 
received  in  a  manner  that  showed  at  least  that  I  had  no 
desire  to  court  them,  and  that  I  desired  to  stand  rather 
upon  a  footing  of  military  confidence  than  of  private  at 
tachment. 

You  are  too  good  a  judge  of  human  nature  not  to  be 
sensible  how  this  conduct  in  me  must  have  operated  on  a 
man  to  whom  all  the  world  is  offering  incense.  With  this 
key  you  will  easily  unlock  the  present  mystery. 

At  the  end  of  the  war  I  may  say  many  things  to  you 
concerning  which  I  shall  impose  upon  myself  till  then  an 
inviolable  silence. 

The  General  is  a  very  honest  man.  His  competitors 
have  slender  abilities,  and  less  integrity.  His  popularity 
has  often  been  essential  to  the  safety  of  America,  and  is 
still  of  great  importance  to  it.  These  considerations  have 
influenced  my  past  conduct  respecting  him,  and  will  in 
fluence  my  future.  I  think  it  is  necessary  he  should  be 
supported. 

His  estimation  in  your  mind,  whatever  may  be  its 
amount,  I  am  persuaded  has  been  formed  on  principles 
which  a  circumstance  like  this  cannot  materially  affect; 
but  if  I  thought  it  could  diminish  your  friendship  for  him, 
I  should  almost  forego  the  motives  that  urge  me  to  justify 
myself  to  you.  I  wish  what  I  have  said  to  make  no  other 
impression  than  to  satisfy  you  I  have  not  been  in  the 
wrong.  It  is  also  said  in  confidence,  as  a  public  knowl 
edge  of  the  breach  would,  in  many  ways,  have  an  ill  effect. 
It  will  probably  be  the  policy  of  both  sides  to  conceal  it, 
and  cover  the  separation  with  some  plausible  pretext. 
I  am  importuned  by  such  of  my  friends  as  are  privy  to 
the  affair,  to  listen  to  a  reconciliation;  but  my  resolution 
is  unalterable. 


118  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Allowances  for  the  pomposity  and  conceit  of  this 
letter  should  be  made  on  account  of  the  youth  of 
the  writer  and  the  temper  in  which  it  was  written. 
He  had  turned  twenty-four  only  a  little  over  a 
month  before;  he  wrote  while  still  under  the  excite 
ment  of  the  breach,  and  while  in  a  rage  that  was 
intensified  by  the  formal  restraints  put  upon  it. 
And  he  was  writing  to  a  father-in-law  of  only  a  few 
months'  standing,  in  whose  eyes  he  naturally  de 
sired  to  exhibit  his  behavior  in  a  dignified  aspect. 
On  his  own  showing,  Washington  did  everything 
possible  to  expiate  an  offense  committed  in  a  mo 
ment  of  irritation  not  unwarranted  by  the  circum 
stances.  A  few  words  of  explanation  would  have 
set  the  matter  right  at  once.  That  Hamilton  was 
so  deeply  hurt  shows  that  he  had  got  into  the  state 
in  which  a  slight  wound  festers.  The  disparaging 
remarks  he  made  about  Washington  are  such  as  are 
usually  consequent  upon  such  a  falling  out  between 
intimates.  Nothing  is  more  common  on  the  part 
of  clever  juniors  than  such  an  attitude  toward  elders 
with  whose  dignity  they  are  too  familiar  to  be  im 
pressed  by  it,  while  they  are  still  too  inexperienced 
to  appreciate  it. 

Hamilton  was  not  mistaken  in  thinking  that  it 
would  take  strong  argument  to  convince  General 
Schuyler  of  the  propriety  of  the  step  he  had  taken. 
Hamilton's  letter  reached  the  general  at  night,  and 
the  next  day  he  made  a  reply  which  is  a  model  of 


A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON     119 

kindness  and  tact.  He  began:  "I  confess  the  con 
tents  surprised  and  afflicted  me — not  that  I  discover 
any  impropriety  in  your  conduct  in  the  affair  in 
question,  for  of  that,  I  persuade  myself,  you  are  in 
capable;  but  it  may  be  attended  with  consequences 
prejudicial  to  my  country,  which  I  love,  which  I 
affectionately  love." 

The  letter  then  goes  on  to  appeal  to  Hamilton's 
patriotism  not  to  abandon  a  post  in  which  his  ser 
vices  were  so  important.  After  putting  adroitly  and 
forcibly  the  argument  from  this  standpoint,  he  con 
cluded  with  this  touching  appeal  to  Hamilton's  good 
feeling: 

It  is  evident,  my  dear  sir,  that  the  General  conceived 
himself  the  aggressor,  and  that  he  quickly  repented  of 
the  insult.  ...  It  falls  to  the  lot  of  few  men  to  pass 
through  life  without  one  of  those  unguarded  moments 
which  wound  the  feelings  of  a  friend.  Let  us  then  impute 
them  to  the  frailties  of  human  nature,  and  with  Sterne's 
recording  angel,  drop  a  tear,  and  blot  it  out  of  the  page 
of  life.  I  do  not  mean  to  reprehend  the  maxims  you 
have  formed  for  your  conduct.  They  are  laudable,  and 
though  generally  approved,  yet  times  and  circumstances 
sometimes  render  a  deviation  necessary  and  justifiable. 
This  necessity  now  exists  in  the  distresses  of  your  country. 
Make  the  sacrifice.  The  greater  it  is,  the  more  glorious 
to  you.  Your  services  are  wanted.  They  are  wanted  in 
that  particular  station  which  you  have  already  filled  so 
beneficially  to  the  public,  and  with  such  extensive  repu 
tation. 


120  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

If  any  argument  or  appeal  would  have  moved 
Hamilton,  no  more  effective  approach  could  have 
been  made  than  that  which  Schuyler  used.  If  there 
had  been  nothing  more  in  the  case  than  wounded 
pride,  Schuyler's  efforts  would  certainly  have  suc 
ceeded,  but,  as  Hamilton  now  felt  assured  that  he 
could  serve  public  interests  more  effectually  in  other 
ways,  appeals  to  his  patriotism  only  served  to  con 
firm  his  resolution.  Lafayette,  whose  casual  de 
tention  of  Hamilton  was  the  immediate  cause  of 
Washington's  annoyance,  also  exerted  himself  to 
effect  a  reconciliation,  but  he  found,  to  his  regret, 
"each  disposed  to  believe  the  other  was  not  sorry 
for  the  separation.7' 

In  resigning  his  position  as  aide-de-camp  Hamilton 
had  no  intention  of  leaving  the  army.  "I  cannot 
think  of  quitting  the  army  during  the  war/'  he  wrote 
to  Schuyler.  His  first  preference  was  for  the  artil 
lery,  the  branch  of  the  army  to  which  he  had  for 
merly  belonged,  but  in  returning  to  it  he  would 
have  gone  to  the  bottom  of  the  list  in  his  rank.  As 
he  believed  that  the  war  was  drawing  to  a  close, 
and  a  command  in  the  infantry  would  leave  him 
time  for  study  during  the  winter,  he  decided  in  favor 
of  an  infantry  position.  By  virtue  of  his  staff  posi 
tion  he  was  entitled  to  a  commission  as  lieutenant- 
colonel,  dating  from  March  1,  1777,  and  this  he  now 
obtained,  but  it  did  not  carry  with  it  any  regimental 
connection,  and  he  made  formal  application  to  Gen- 


A  BEEACH  WITH  WASHINGTON     121 

eral  Washington  for  an  appointment.  The  general 
felt  somewhat  embarrassed  by  the  application,  as 
he  had  had  trouble  from  appointments  of  the  kind 
desired  by  Hamilton.  In  his  reply,  which  bears  the 
same  date  as  Hamilton's  application,  he  referred  to 
cases  in  which  the  giving  of  commands  to  outsiders 
had  been  deeply  resented  by  the  officers  of  the  line. 
"To  add  to  the  discontent  of  the  officers  of  those 
lines,  by  the  further  appointment  of  an  officer  of 
your  rank  .  .  .  would,  I  am  certain,  involve  me  in 
a  difficulty  of  a  very  disagreeable  and  delicate  na 
ture,  and  might,  perhaps,  lead  to  consequences  more 
serious  than  it  is  easy  to  imagine."  Washington 
undoubtedly  felt  keenly  his  inability  to  gratify  Ham 
ilton,  particularly  in  view  of  the  recent  breach  in 
their  relations.  He  concluded  his  letter  with  the 
remark:  "My  principal  concern  arises  from  an  ap 
prehension  that  you  will  impute  my  refusal  of  your 
request  to  other  motives  than  those  I  have  expressed, 
but  I  beg  you  to  be  assured,  I  am  only  influenced  by 
the  reasons  which  I  have  mentioned." 

Hamilton  wrote  again,  urging  that  his  case  differed 
from  the  case  of  those  appointments  which  had  been 
resented  as  favors  to  outsiders,  as  he  had  entered 
the  army  in  the  line,  held  a  regular  commission,  and 
had  simply  been  detached  for  staff  duty,  so  that  he 
was  now  only  seeking  a  restoration  to  his  original 
sphere.  In  closing  he  declared:  "I  assure  your  Ex 
cellency,  that  I  am  too  well  persuaded  of  your  can- 


122  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

dor,  to  attribute  your  refusal  to  any  other  cause 
than  an  apprehension  of  inconveniences  that  may 
attend  the  appointment." 

Nothing  came  of  Hamilton's  application  until 
July,  when  he  again  wrote  to  Washington,  and  with 
the  letter  returned  his  commission.  Washington 
sent  one  of  his  aides,  Colonel  Tilghman,  to  induce 
Hamilton  to  retain  his  commission,  promising  an 
appointment  to  active  command  at  the  first  oppor 
tunity.  Events  soon  assumed  such  shape  that  Ham 
ilton  was  able  to  obtain  the  military  employment 
he  desired.  When  the  campaign  of  1781  opened,  it 
had  been  Washington's  intention  to  lay  siege  to  the 
British  position  at  New  York,  and  military  arrange 
ments  to  that  end  went  on  until  the  middle  of 
August.  The  British  commander-in-chief ,  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  planned  a  counter-stroke  by  way  of  the 
Chesapeake  Bay,  and  Lord  Cornwallis,  who  was 
then  operating  in  Virginia,  was  instructed  to  estab 
lish  a  base  either  at  Williamsburg  or  Yorktown, 
whence  by  water  conveyance  he  could  strike  at  Bal 
timore,  or  Philadelphia,  to  destroy  stores  and  re 
sources  upon  which  Washington  would  be  depend 
ing.  The  plan  was  not  a  bad  one,  provided  control 
of  the  sea  remained  in  British  hands.  On  August  15 
advices  reached  Washington  that  Count  de  Grasse, 
who  commanded  the  French  fleet  in  the  West  Indies, 
would  sail  for  the  Chesapeake,  thus  cutting  Corn- 
wallis's  communications  and  isolating  his  position. 


A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON     123 

Washington  promptly  decided  to  take  advantage  of 
the  opportunity  thus  presented,  and  he  made  ar 
rangements  for  transferring  his  army  to  Yorktown, 
and  Hamilton  was  appointed  to  the  command  of  a 
regiment  of  light  infantry  which  formed  part  of 
Lafayette's  corps. 

Hamilton's  letters  to  his  wife  at  this  period  are 
full  of  the  great  love  that  accompanies  a  high  sense 
of  honor.  He  wrote: 

A  part  of  the  army,  my  dear  girl,  is  going  to  Virginia, 
and  I  must,  of  necessity,  be  separated  at  a  much  greater 
distance  from  my  beloved  wife.  I  cannot  announce  the 
fatal  necessity,  without  feeling  everything  that  a  fond 
husband  can  feel.  I  am  unhappy;  I  am  unhappy  beyond 
expression.  I  am  unhappy,  because  I  am  to  be  so  remote 
from  you;  because  I  am  to  hear  from  you  less  frequently 
than  I  am  accustomed  to  do.  I  am  miserable,  because 
I  know  you  will  be  so;  I  am  wretched  at  the  idea  of 
flying  so  far  from  you,  without  a  single  hour's  interview, 
to  tell  you  all  my  pains  and  all  my  love.  But  I  cannot 
ask  permission  to  visit  you.  It  might  be  thought  im 
proper  to  leave  my  corps  at  such  a  time  and  upon  such 
an  occasion.  I  must  go  without  seeing  you — I  must  go 
without  embracing  you;  alas !  I  must  go. 

Hamilton's  command  embarked  for  Yorktown  at 
Head  of  Elk  on  September  7.  On  the  day  before  he 
wrote : 

I  would  give  the  world  to  be  able  to  tell  you  all  I  feel 
and  all  I  wish,  but  consult  your  own  heart  and  you  will 


124  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

know  mine.  What  a  world  will  soon  be  between  us  !  To 
support  the  idea,  all  my  fortitude  is  insufficient.  What 
must  be  the  case  with  you,  who  have  the  most  female  of 
female  hearts  ?  I  sink  at  the  perspective  of  your  distress 
and  I  look  to  heaven  to  be  your  guardian  and  supporter. 
Circumstances  that  have  just  come  to  my  knowledge 
assure  me  that  our  operations  will  be  expeditious,  as  well 
as  our  success  certain.  Early  in  November,  as  I  prom 
ised  you,  we  shall  certainly  meet.  Cheer  yourself  with 
this  idea,  and  with  the  assurance  of  never  more  being 
separated.  Every  day  confirms  me  in  the  intention  of 
renouncing  public  life  and  devoting  myself  wholly  to  you. 
Let  others  waste  their  time  and  their  tranquillity  in  a 
vain  pursuit  of  honor  and  glory;  be  it  my  object  to  be 
happy  in  a  quiet  retreat  with  my  better  angel. 

On  October  16  he  gave  his  wife  this  brief  account 
of  a  gallant  military  exploit: 

Two  nights  ago,  my  Eliza,  my  duty  and  my  honor 
obliged  me  to  take  a  step  in  which  your  happiness  was 
too  much  risked.  I  commanded  an  attack  upon  one  of 
the  enemy's  redoubts;  we  carried  it  in  an  instant  and 
with  little  loss.  You  will  see  the  particulars  in  the  Phila 
delphia  papers.  There  will  be,  certainly,  nothing  more 
of  this  kind;  all  the  rest  will  be  by  approach;  and  if  there 
should  be  another  occasion,  it  will  not  fall  to  my  turn  to 
execute  it. 

Hamilton  thus  briefly  and  modestly  dismissed 
what  was  a  brilliant  military  exploit,  the  details  of 
which  illustrate  the  sensitive  quality  of  his  honor 
as  well  as  his  dauntless  courage.  The  position  occu- 


A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON     125 

pied  by  Cornwallis  at  Yorktown  was  most  readily 
assailable  from  the  southwest  against  his  left  wing, 
to  protect  which  fortifications  had  been  thrown  up, 
with  redoubts  at  commanding  points.  The  Ameri 
can  siege  was  begun  by  establishing  a  parallel  forti 
fication  on  which  batteries  were  posted.  With  the 
French  aid,  the  besiegers  had  a  preponderance  of 
guns  and  in  a  few  days  an  advance  upon  the  first 
line  of  the  British  fortifications  was  deemed  practi 
cable.  In  making  the  arrangements  for  the  assault 
Hamilton  was  passed  over.  Accounts  of  the  affair 
differ,  that  given  in  J.  C.  Hamilton's  biography  of 
his  father  being  to  the  effect  that  Washington  gave 
the  command  to  Colonel  Barber  from  a  supposed 
precedence  due  to  his  rank  and  service.  General 
Henry  Lee,  in  his  Memoirs,  states  that  Lafayette 
gave  the  command  of  the  van  to  his  own  aide-de 
camp,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Gimat.  Hamilton  pro 
tested  on  the  ground  that  the  time  fixed  for  the 
assault  came  within  his  tour  of  duty.  Lafayette 
excused  himself  on  the  ground  that  the  arrange 
ments  had  been  approved  by  Washington  and  were 
no  longer  open  to  change.  Lee's  account  proceeds: 

Hamilton  .  .  .  left  the  marquis,  announcing  his  deter 
mination  to  appeal  to  headquarters.  This  he  accordingly 
did,  in  a  spirited  and  manly  letter.  Washington,  incapable 
of  injustice,  sent  for  the  marquis,  and  inquiring  into  the 
fact,  found  that  the  tour  of  duty  belonging  to  Hamilton 
had  been  given  to  Gimat.  He  instantly  directed  the  mar- 


126  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

quis  to  reinstate  Hamilton,  who  consequently  was  put 
at  the  head  of  the  van. 


As  Lee  took  part  in  the  siege  of  Yorktown,  and  he 
expressly  says  that  he  obtained  the  particulars  from 
Hamilton  himself,  his  account  should  be  regarded 
as  the  authentic  version  of  the  affair. 

It  was  one  of  Hamilton's  characteristics  all  through 
life  that  his  interest  was  in  getting  things  done,  not 
in  celebrating  the  doing  of  them.  He  always  looked 
forward.  The  only  account  Hamilton  himself  left 
of  the  assault  is  his  official  report,  which  abounds 
with  complimentary  references  to  the  behavior  of 
officers  and  men,  but  does  not  mention  his  own  be 
havior.  The  assault  took  place  as  soon  as  it  had 
become  dark  on  the  evening  of  October  14,  1781. 
Lee  says:  "Hamilton,  with  his  own  and  Gimat's 
corps  of  light  infantry,  rushed  forward  with  impet 
uosity.  Pulling  up  the  abatis  and  knocking  down 
the  palisades,  he  forced  his  way  into  the  redoubt." 
In  Leake's  biography  of  General  John  Lamb,  who 
was  at  the  siege  of  Yorktown,  this  account  is  given: 
"La  Fayette's  forlorn  hope  was  led  by  Colonel  Ham 
ilton,  and  the  redoubt  was  carried,  with  great  gal 
lantry  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet.  The  palisades 
and  abatis  were  scaled,  and  Hamilton,  placing  one 
foot  on  the  shoulder  of  a  soldier  who  knelt  for  that 
purpose,  sprang  upon  the  parapet,  and  was  the  first 
man  within  the  wall.  The  French  attack  was  also 


A  BREACH  WITH  WASHINGTON     127 

successful,  but  the  work  was  not  so  soon  carried, 
and  was  attended  with  greater  loss,  owing  to  the 
troops  being  under  a  heavy  fire,  until  the  sappers 
opened  a  passage;  a  loss  which  ours  avoided  by  the 
promptness  of  the  escalade." 

This  latter  account  of  Hamilton's  leadership  is 
the  more  probable  one.  It  tallies  with  all  the  cir 
cumstances  set  forth  in  his  official  report.  Hamil 
ton  was  in  command,  and  the  force  was  composed  of 
his  battalion,  a  battalion  under  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Gimat,  a  detachment  under  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Laurens,  and  a  detachment  of  sappers  and  miners 
under  Captain  Gilleland.  The  approach  was  prob 
ably  as  stealthy  as  possible.  The  attack  was  made 
at  night  and  Hamilton's  report  expressly  states  that 
the  troops  advanced  "with  unloaded  arms."  The 
British  line  on  which  Hamilton  moved  was  probably 
carried  with  a  rush,  and  so  small  was  his  stature 
that  he  could  hardly  have  reached  the  parapet  with 
out  a  lift  from  a  soldier.  The  rapidity  of  Hamil 
ton's  assault  explains  the  slight  loss  sustained  by 
his  battalion.  No  one  was  killed  and  only  four 
of  the  soldiers  were  wounded.  Gimat's  battalion, 
which  waited  until  the  sappers  breached  the  abatis, 
experienced  severe  loss.  Gimat  himself  received 
a  musket-ball  in  his  foot  and  retired  from  the 
field.  Two  of  his  captains  were  wounded,  a  sergeant 
was  killed  and  another  sergeant  wounded.  Seven  of 
his  rank  and  file  were  killed  and  fifteen  were  wounded. 


128  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Altogether,  nine  were  killed  and  thirty-one  were 
wounded  on  the  American  side;  on  the  British  side 
the  killed  and  wounded  did  not  exceed  eight.  The 
facts  indicate  that  the  British  were  rather  taken  by 
surprise  and  that  the  position  was  not  tenaciously 
held.  The  truth  was  that  the  British  were  hope 
lessly  entrapped  and  they  knew  it.  Washington 
moved  his  batteries  up  to  the  captured  line  and 
the  British  position  then  became  untenable.  On 
the  19th  Cornwallis  surrendered  and  the  garrison 
marched  out  as  prisoners  of  war.  This  event  was 
practically  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  so 
that  Hamilton  gained  his  laurels  as  a  field  com 
mander  in  what  turned  out  to  be  the  decisive  action. 
In  commenting  upon  it  Washington  wrote:  "Few 
cases  have  exhibited  greater  proofs  of  intrepidity, 
coolness  and  firmness,  than  were  shown  on  this 
occasion." 


CHAPTER  X 
THE  START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION 

WITH  the  close  of  the  Yorktown  campaign  Hamilton 
felt  free  to  go  on  with  his  plans  for  establishing  him 
self  in  civil  life.  He  went  to  Albany,  where  his  wife 
was  staying  in  her  father's  home,  and  remained 
there  until  the  birth  of  his  first  child,  Philip,  Janu 
ary  22,  1782.  That  event  naturally  sharpened 
Hamilton's  desire  for  a  settled  occupation  in  which 
he  could  provide  for  his  family.  Writing  to  his 
friend,  Colonel  Meade,  of  Washington's  staff,  the 
following  March,  to  congratulate  him  on  the  birth 
of  a  daughter,  Hamilton  remarked:  "I  can  well  con 
ceive  your  happiness  on  that  occasion,  by  that  which 
I  feel  on  a  similar  one.  Indeed,  the  sensations 
of  a  tender  father  of  the  child  of  a  beloved  mother, 
can  only  be  conceived  by  those  who  have  experi 
enced  them."  Farther  on  he  tells  Meade:  "You 
cannot  imagine  how  entirely  domestic  I  am  growing. 
I  lose  all  taste  for  the  pursuits  of  ambition.  I  sigh 
for  nothing  but  the  company  of  my  wife  and  my 
baby.  The  ties  of  duty  alone,  or  imagined  duty, 
keep  me  from  renouncing  public  life  altogether.  It 
is,  however,  probable  I  may  not  any  longer  be  en 
gaged  in  it." 

129 


130  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

This  letter  was  written  from  Philadelphia;  whither 
Hamilton  had  gone  to  arrange  for  preserving  his 
military  rank  so  long  as  the  war  might  continue. 
General  Washington  was  in  Philadelphia  to  consult 
with  Congress,  then  sitting  in  that  city.  Hamilton's 
views  were  set  forth  in  two  letters  to  Washington, 
March  1, 1782,  one  of  which  was  written  with  a  view 
to  having  it  shown  to  members  of  Congress  so  that 
they  should  understand  his  position  exactly.  In  it 
he  renounced  "all  claim  to  the  compensations  at 
tached  to  my  military  station  during  the  war  or 
afterwards."  But  he  also  declared:  "I  am  unwill 
ing  to  put  it  out  of  my  power  to  renew  my  exertions 
in  the  common  cause  in  the  line  in  wThich  I  have 
hitherto  acted."  He  therefore  desired  to  retain  his 
rank,  saying,  "I  shall  be  at  all  times  ready  to  obey 
the  call  of  the  public  in  any  capacity,  civil  or  mili 
tary  (consistent  with  what  I  owe  to  myself),  in  which 
there  may  be  a  prospect  of  my  contributing  to  the 
final  attainment  of  the  object  for  which  I  embarked 
in  the  service." 

Returning  to  Albany,  Hamilton  studied  hard  to 
fit  himself  for  legal  practice.  He  rented  a  house 
and  invited  his  college  chum,  Robert  Troup,  to  live 
with  him.  In  less  than  five  months  he  was  ad 
mitted  to  the  bar.  That  fact,  standing  alone,  might 
as  well  imply  lax  requirement  as  unusual  ability; 
but  other  circumstances  leave  no  doubt  of  the  solid 
preparation  he  was  able  to  make  in  so  short  a  time. 


START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION     131 

It  should  be  considered  that  his  mind  had  been  ad 
dressed  to  law  by  all  his  studies.  His  deficiency  was 
in  the  technique  of  the  profession,  and  in  supplying 
that  lack  he  availed  himself  of  a  principle  well 
known  to  every  student,  which  is  that  no  informa 
tion  is  so  fully  seized  and  so  tightly  held  as  that 
which  is  collected  and  arranged  for  a  special  pur 
pose.  With  Troup  at  hand  to  answer  his  inquiries 
and  direct  his  research,  he  composed  a  manual  on 
the  practice  of  law,  which,  Troup  relates,  "served  as 
an  instructive  grammar  to  future  students,  and 
became  the  groundwork  of  subsequent  enlarged 
practical  treatises."  J.  C.  Hamilton,  writing  about 
seventy  years  later,  remarked:  "There  are  gentle 
men  now  living  who  copied  this  manual  as  their 
guide,  one  of  which  is  in  existence."  It  was  an 
astonishing  feat  for  him  to  perform  at  the  age  of 
twenty-five,  while  still  a  novice,  but  he  was  made 
quite  capable  of  it  by  his  extraordinary  powers  of 
mental  application  and  orderly  analysis. 

Hamilton's  letters  at  this  time  declare  strong  in 
tention  to  keep  out  of  politics  and  stick  to  the  law. 
His  most  intimate  friends  were  urgent  in  counselling 
him  to  do  that  very  thing,  and  cease  neglecting  his 
own  interests  to  engage  in  public  service  from  which 
he  could  expect  neither  reward  nor  gratitude.  Two 
of  his  former  companions  on  Washington's  staff, 
Harrison  and  Meade,  left  the  army  about  this  time, 
feeling  that  they  had  no  right  to  be  neglecting  their 


132  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

own  interests  any  longer,  and  they  both  pressed  the 
same  view  upon  Hamilton.  In  August,  1782,  an 
other  army  friend,  Doctor  McHenry,  wrote: 

It  appears  to  me,  Hamilton,  to  be  no  longer  necessary 
or  a  duty,  for  you  and  I  to  go  on  to  sacrifice  the  small 
remnant  of  time  that  is  left  us.  We  have  already  immo 
lated  largely  on  the  altar  of  liberty.  At  present,  our 
country  neither  wants  our  services  in  the  field  or  the 
cabinet,  so  it  is  incumbent  upon  us  to  be  useful  in  another 
line.  .  .  .  You  have  a  wife  and  an  increasing  offspring 
to  urge  you  forward.  .  .  . 

In  this  letter,  which  was  long,  rambling,  and  gos 
sipy,  McHenry  gave  this  warning  anecdote: 

Hamilton,  there  are  two  lawyers  in  this  town  [Balti 
more],  one  of  which  has  served  the  public  in  the  General 
Assembly  for  three  years  with  reputation,  and  to  the 
neglect  of  his  practice.  The  other  has  done  nothing  but 
attend  to  his  profession,  by  which  he  has  acquired  a 
handsome  competency.  Now  the  people  have  taken  it 
into  their  heads  to  displace  the  lawyer  which  has  served 
them  till  he  became  poor,  in  order  to  put  in  his  stead  the 
lawyer  who  has  served  himself  &  become  rich.  .  .  . 
What  is  the  moral  of  all  this,  my  dear  friend,  but  that 
it  is  high  time  for  you  and  I  to  set  about  in  good  earnest, 
doing  something  for  ourselves. 

Hamilton's  answer  to  this  has  not  been  preserved, 
but  he  wrote  to  Lafayette,  November  3,  1782: 

I  have  been  employed  for  the  last  ten  months  in  rock 
ing  the  cradle  and  studying  the  art  of  fleecing  my  neigh- 


START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION     133 

bors.  ...  I  am  going  to  throw  away  a  few  months 
more  in  public  life,  and  then  retire  a  simple  citizen  and 
good  paterfamilias.  .  .  .  You  see  the  disposition  I  am  in. 
You  are  condemned  to  run  the  race  of  ambition  all  your 
life.  I  am  already  tired  of  the  career,  and  dare  to  leave  it. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  Hamilton  was  quite 
sincere  in  what  he  said.  Affectation  was  not  one 
of  his  faults.  But  in  this  letter,  as  in  other  revela 
tions  of  the  state  of  his  mind,  distaste  for  the  money- 
grubbing  side  of  legal  practice  is  manifested,  and 
his  interest  in  public  affairs  was  too  strong  to  be 
stifled.  Busy  as  he  was  in  the  summer  of  1782,  he 
could  not  forbear  making  his  protest  against  an 
act  that  he  regarded  as  barbarous,  although  in  a 
way  he  seemed  to  be  going  against  General  Wash 
ington  himself.  A  loyalist  had  been  killed  by  his 
guard  while  attempting  to  escape.  In  retaliation  a 
band  of  loyalists  hanged  Captain  Huddy,  of  the 
American  army,  captured  by  them  in  New  Jersey. 
On  his  body  was  found  the  label:  "Up  goes  Huddy 
for  Philip  White."  Washington  convened  a  council 
of  officers,  who  unanimously  decided  that  either 
Lippincott,  the  captain  of  the  loyalist  band,  should 
be  executed  as  a  murderer,  or  else  an  officer  of  equal 
rank  among  the  British  prisoners  should  suffer  in 
his  stead.  Washington  approved  the  decision,  and 
wrote  to  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  "to  save  the  innocent, 
I  demand  the  guilty. "  But  Clinton  refused  to  sur 
render  Lippincott,  and  Washington  gave  orders  that 
one  of  the  British  captains  should  be  selected  to 


134  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

suffer  in  his  stead.  The  lot  fell  on  Captain  Asgill, 
a  youth  of  nineteen. 

Hamilton  wrote  to  General  Knox:  "As  this  ap 
pears  to  me  clearly  an  ill-timed  proceeding,  and  if 
persisted  in  will  be  derogatory  to  the  national  char 
acter,  I  cannot  forbear  communicating  to  you  my 
ideas  upon  the  subject.  A  sacrifice  of  this  sort  is 
entirely  repugnant  to  the  genius  of  the  age  we  live 
in,  and  is  without  example  in  modern  history,  nor 
can  it  fail  to  be  considered  in  Europe  as  wanton  and 
unnecessary.  ...  So  solemn  and  deliberate  a  sac 
rifice  of  the  innocent  for  the  guilty  must  be  con 
demned  on  the  present  received  notions  of  humanity, 
and  encourage  an  opinion  that  we  are  in  a  certain 
degree  in  a  state  of  barbarism/7  The  letter  argues 
the  case  at  length,  and  makes  the  strong  point  that 
the  British  commander  had  taken  steps  to  prevent 
any  repetition  of  the  Huddy  affair,  "and,  therefore, 
the  only  justifying  motive  of  retaliation,  the  pre 
venting  of  a  repetition  of  cruelty,  ceases."  As  to 
the  point  that  General  Washington  could  not  now 
recede  from  the  position  he  had  taken,  he  declared : 
"Inconsistency  in  this  case  would  be  better  than 
consistency.  But  pretexts  may  be  found  and  will  be 
readily  admitted  in  favor  of  humanity." 

Washington,  from  his  own  feelings,  was  quite  de 
sirous  of  finding  a  pretext,  and  he  delayed  proceed 
ings  in  that  hope.  He  laid  the  matter  before  Con 
gress,  on  the  ground  that  "it  is  a  great  national  con- 


START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION     135 

cern,  upon  which  an  individual  ought  not  to  decide." 
But  Congress  took  no  action,  refusing  to  move  even 
after  Washington  had  written  to  Duane,  a  member 
from  New  York,  begging  to  be  relieved  from  his 
"  cruel  situation."  Eventually  French  influence  in 
tervened,  and  Congress  was  very  susceptible  to  that, 
since  France  was  the  source  of  its  supplies  of  real 
money.  Lady  Asgill,  the  mother  of  the  young  offi 
cer,  wrote  such  a  moving  letter  that  Louis  XVI  and 
his  Queen  took  an  active  interest  in  the  case,  and 
their  representations,  communicated  to  Washington, 
were  laid  by  him  before  Congress,  with  the  result 
that  a  resolution  was  passed  directing  that  Captain 
Asgill  be  set  at  liberty. 

At  the  time  Hamilton  intervened  in  this  affair  he 
was  a  federal  office-holder,  as  a  temporary  employ 
ment  reluctantly  accepted  at  a  time  when  he  was 
busy  with  his  legal  studies.  Among  the  improve 
ments  in  administration  he  had  recommended  while 
still  on  Washington's  staff  was  the  appointment  of 
a  " Continental  Superintendent"  in  each  State  to 
attend  to  federal  requisitions.  In  the  autumn  of 
1781  Congress  created  the  office,  and  on  May  2, 
1782,  Robert  Morris  appointed  Hamilton  to  it  for 
the  State  of  New  York,  his  compensation  to  be  one- 
fourth  of  one  per  cent  on  his  collections.  As  New 
York's  quota  for  the  year  had  been  fixed  at  $373,598, 
a  commission  amounting  to  $934  was  allowed,  but 
the  prospect  of  collections  was  such  that  the  com- 


136  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

mission  would  scarcely  exceed  $500.  Hamilton  ab 
first  declined  the  office,  observing:  "Time  is  so  pre 
cious  to  me,  that  I  could  not  put  myself  in  the  way 
of  interruptions  unless  for  an  object  of  consequence 
to  the  public  or  myself."  Morris  would  not  bo 
refused.  He  said  that  the  pay  would  be  fixed  by 
the  quota  irrespective  of  the  collections,  and  while 
this  "will  not  be  equal  to  what  your  own  abilities 
will  gain  in  the  profession  of  law,"  he  particularly 
desired  Hamilton's  acceptance.  But  Hamilton  still 
had  scruples.  "As  the  matter  now  stands,  there 
seems  to  be  little  for  a  Continental  receiver  to  do." 
If  he  did  no  more  than  to  receive  money  handed  to 
him  his  official  duty  would  be  discharged.  Said 
Hamilton:  "There  is  only  one  way  in  which  I  can 
imagine  a  prospect  of  being  materially  useful;  that 
is,  in  seconding  your  application  to  the  State.  In 
popular  assemblies  much  may  sometimes  be  brought 
about  by  personal  discussions,  by  entering  into  de 
tails  and  combating  objections  as  they  rise.  If 
it  should,  at  any  time,  be  thought  advisable  by  you 
to  empower  me  to  act  in  this  capacity,  I  shall  be 
happy  to  do  everything  that  depends  upon  me  to 
effectuate  your  views." 

This  was  just  what  Morris  wanted,  and  on  July  2 
he  wrote:  "It  gives  me  singular  pleasure,  to  find  that 
you  yourself  have  pointed  out  the  principal  objects 
of  your  appointment."  He  enlarged  upon  the 
point,  urging  Hamilton  to  address  "all  the  abilities 


START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION     137 

with  which  Heaven  has  blessed  you  to  induce  the 
legislature  to  take  proper  action."  Hamilton  re 
plied  that  he  would  do  what  he  could,  but  that  little 
could  be  accomplished  until  there  was  a  deep  change 
in  the  whole  system  of  government.  "To  effect 
this,  mountains  of  prejudice  and  particular  interest 
are  to  be  levelled." 

The  series  of  reports  Hamilton  now  transmitted 
to  Morris  give  an  instructive  survey  of  the  compli 
cated  defects  of  the  situation.  He  gave  an  account 
of  the  State's  financial  situation,  pointing  out  how 
it  had  been  weakened  by  the  fact  that  five  out  of 
the  fourteen  counties  were  still  in  the  hands  of  the 
enemy.  Deprived  of  foreign  trade,  internal  traffic 
was  carried  on  upon  the  most  disadvantageous 
terms.  These  untoward  circumstances  were  aggra 
vated  by  mismanagement.  He  instanced  what  has 
always  been  the  great  bane  of  American  legislation 
when  he  observed:  "The  inquiry  constantly  is  what 
will  please,  not  what  will  benefit  the  people.  In  such 
a  government  there  can  be  nothing  but  temporary 
expenditure,  fickleness  and  folly." 

Hamilton  estimated  that  early  in  the  war  nearly 
one-half  the  people  sided  with  Great  Britain,  and 
probably  a  third  still  had  their  secret  wishes  on 
that  side.  "The  remainder  sigh  for  peace,  murmur 
at  taxes,  clamor  at  their  rulers,  change  one  incapable 
man  for  another  more  incapable,  and,  I  fear,  if  left 
to  themselves,  would,  too  many  of  them,  be  willing 


138  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

to  purchase  peace  at  any  price."  He  did  not  regard 
this  situation  as  peculiar  to  New  York.  "  However 
disagreeable  the  reflection,  I  have  too  much  reason 
to  believe  that  the  true  picture  of  other  States  would 
be,  in  proportion  to  their  circumstances,  equally 
unpromising.  All  my  inquiries  and  all  that  appears 
induce  this  opinion." 

No  wonder  Hamilton  indorsed  this  letter  as  "Pn- 
vate";  it  was  not  published  in  its  entirety  until  1885. 
It  displays  the  actual  conditions  under  which  the 
movement  for  national  union  began.  In  his  letter 
to  Duane,  September  3,  1780,  Hamilton  had  been 
the  first  to  propose  a  constitutional  convention. 
Now  he  was  able  to  start  the  movement.  In  carry 
ing  out  his  plans  he  was  greatly  aided  by  the  fact 
that  General  Schuyler  was  then  a  member  of  the 
State  Senate.  Hamilton's  first  step  was  to  address 
a  letter  to  Governor  Clinton,  notifying  him  of  his 
appointment,  stating  that  it  was  "  a  part  of  his  duty, 
to  explain  to  the  legislature  from  time  to  time,  the 
views  of  the  Superintendent  of  Finance,  in  pursu 
ance  of  the  orders  of  Congress/'  and  asking  the 
honor  of  a  conference  with  a  committee  of  the  two 
houses.  Clinton  laid  the  matter  before  the  legisla 
ture  and  conferences  were  held  in  which  Hamilton 
virtually  acted  in  the  capacity  of  a  chancellor  of  the 
exchequer,  explaining  and  recommending  projects  of 
taxation.  While  not  able  to  secure  the  adoption  of 
all  his  plans,  he  had  considerable  success,  and  inci- 


START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION     139 

dentally  he  launched  the  project  of  a  new  constitu 
tion.  Although  that  result  was  not  to  be  attained 
for  five  years  yet,  the  definite  sequence  of  events 
begins  at  this  time. 

On  July  19,  1782;  the  Senate,  on  motion  of  Gen 
eral  Schuyler,  resolved  itself  into  a  committee  of  the 
whole,  "to  take  into  consideration  the  state  of  the 
Union/7  and  the  Assembly  at  once  followed  suit. 
The  next  day  an  important  set  of  resolutions  was 
reported.  They  declared  "  that  the  situation  of  these 
States  is  in  a  peculiar  manner  critical,  and  affords 
the  strongest  reason  to  apprehend,  from  a  continu 
ance  of  the  present  constitution  of  the  Continental 
government,  a  subdivision  of  the  public  credit,  and 
consequences  highly  dangerous  to  the  safety  and  in 
dependence  of  these  States." 

After  a  series  of  preambles  dealing  with  particular 
features  of  the  situation,  there  followed  a  resolution 
declaring  that  the  desired  ends  can  never  be  attained 
through  the  deliberations  of  the  States  individually, 
"but  that  it  is  essential  to  the  common  welfare,  that 
there  should  be  as  soon  as  possible  a  conference  of 
the  whole  on  this  subject,  and  that  it  would  be 
advisable  for  this  purpose  to  propose  to  Congress  to 
recommend,  and  to  each  State  to  adopt,  the  mea 
sure  of  assembling  a  general  convention  of  the 
States,  specially  authorized  to  revise  and  amend 
the  Confederation,  reserving  a  right  to  the  respec 
tive  legislatures  to  ratify  their  determinations." 


140  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

The  resolutions  were  passed  by  the  Senate  and 
were  immediately  sent  to  the  Assembly,  which  con 
curred  by  unanimous  vote  on  Sunday ,  July  21. 
The  next  day  the  governor  was  requested  to  trans 
mit  a  copy  to  Congress  and  to  each  of  the  States. 
These  resolutions  came  from  Hamilton's  pen.  Writ 
ing  to  Morris  on  July  22,  Hamilton  remarked:  "I 
think  this  a  very  eligible  step,  though  I  doubt  of 
the  concurrence  of  the  other  States;  but  I  am  cer 
tain  without  it,  they  will  never  be  brought  to  co 
operate  in  any  reasonable  or  effectual  plan." 

Besides  adopting  Hamilton's  resolutions,  which, 
however,  appeared  before  it  simply  as  a  report  from 
one  of  its  own  committees,  the  legislature  on  the 
next  day  elected  him  as  a  State  delegate  to  the 
Continental  Congress,  to  succeed  General  Schuyler, 
who  withdrew  in  his  favor.  Hamilton's  indebted 
ness  to  Schuyler's  influence  shows  plainly  enough  in 
these  transactions. 

A  letter  to  his  intimate  friend  John  Laurens, 
under  date  of  August  15,  shows  that  Hamilton's 
election  to  Congress  turned  his  thoughts  strongly 
again  to  public  activities.  After  telling  Laurens 
that  peace  negotiations  were  under  way,  he  con 
tinued: 

Peace  made,  my  dear  friend,  a  new  scene  opens.  The 
object  then  will  be  to  make  our  independence  a  blessing. 
To  do  this  we  must  secure  our  Union  on  solid  foundations 
herculean  task, — and  to  effect  which,  mountains  of 


START  TOWARD  NATIONAL  UNION     141 

prejudice  must  be  levelled.  It  requires  all  the  virtue  and 
all  the  abilities  of  the  country.  Quit  your  sword,  my 
friend;  put  on  the  toga.  Come  to  Congress.  We  know 
each  other's  sentiments;  our  views  are  the  same.  We 
have  fought  side  by  side  to  make  America  free;  let  us 
hand  in  hand  struggle  to  make  her  happy. 

Laurens  probably  never  received  this  letter,  for, 
with  the  slow  carriage  of  the  mails  at  that  time,  it 
could  hardly  have  reached  him  in  his  South  Caro 
lina  camp  by  August  27,  on  which  day  he  was  killed. 
He  was  ill  in  bed  when  word  came  of  the  approach 
of  a  party  of  the  enemy,  and  he  arose  at  once  to 
direct  his  troops.  The  affair  turned  out  to  be  a 
mere  skirmish,  but  in  it  Laurens  was  mortally 
wounded.  Hamilton  felt  the  loss  deeply.  Writing 
to  Lafayette,  he  said:  "You  know  how  truly  I  loved 
him,  and  will  judge  how  much  I  regret  him."  Writ 
ing  to  General  Greene,  he  said:  "The  world  will  feel 
the  loss  of  a  man  who  has  left  few  like  him  behind." 
It  was,  indeed,  an  abrupt  ending  of  a  career  of  bril 
liant  promise.  Born  in  the  same  year  as  Hamilton, 
John  Laurens  became  one  of  Washington's  aides  at 
the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution.  He  performed  a 
service  of  inestimable  value  as  a  commissioner  to 
France  in  1781,  when  his  polished  manners  and 
engaging  personality  greatly  facilitated  the  arrange 
ments  by  which  France  contributed  money  and  sup 
plies  for  the  Yorktown  campaign.  His  death  was 
regarded  by  Hamilton  as  a  great  loss  to  the  move- 


142  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ment  for  a  national  union;  which  soon  began  to 
take  shape;  and  which  was  mainly  carried  on  by 
the  younger  set  among  the  American  leaders,  in 
which  Laurens  had  been  a  distinguished  figure. 


CHAPTER  XI 
THE  CRUMBLING  OF  THE  CONFEDERATION 

WHEN  Hamilton  entered  Congress  in  November, 
1782,  the  federal  government  was  in  the  last  stage 
of  decrepitude.  So  long  as  its  issues  of  paper  money 
would  circulate,  Congress  lived  high  and  spent  pro 
fusely.  The  amount  issued  in  1775  was  $6,000,000; 
in  1776,  $19,000,000;  in  1777,  $13,000,000;  in  1778, 
$63,000,000;  in  1779,  $140,000,000.  Toward  the  end 
of  1779  Congress  tried  to  support  the  credit  of  its 
emissions  by  an  address  pledging  faithful  redemp 
tion  of  them,  declaring  that  "a  bankrupt,  faithless 
republic  would  be  a  novelty  in  the  political  world, 
and  appear  among  respectable  nations  like  a  com 
mon  prostitute  among  chaste  and  respectable  ma 
trons."  The  clique  of  lawyer-politicians  that  then 
ran  Congress  could  always  produce  fine  language, 
but  they  could  eat  their  words  with  equal  profes 
sional  facility.  In  little  more  than  three  months 
later  they  enacted  a  sweeping  measure  of  repudia 
tion,  by  a  complicated  scheme  which  accomplished 
that  result  while  avoiding  the  proper  name  for  it. 
By  the  act  of  March  18,  1780,  forty  dollars  in  Con 
tinental  currency  were  rated  as  equivalent  to  only 
one  dollar  in  coin,  in  payments  made  by  the  States 

143 


144  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

to  the  general  government.  Bills  thus  turned  in 
were  to  be  destroyed,  but  a  new  issue  was  author 
ized,  to  be  redeemed  in  specie  within  six  years, 
meanwhile  bearing  interest  at  five  per  cent.  These 
bills  were  to  be  issued  by  the  States  with  the  guar 
antee  of  the  United  States,  and  each  State  was  to 
retain  six-tenths  of  the  issue  signed  by  it,  the  remain 
der  to  be  at  the  disposition  of  the  United  States, 
credited  to  the  States  respectively  on  their  assessed 
quotas.  The  act  provided  that  the  States  should 
establish  sinking-funds,  and  apparently  all  that 
legal  ingenuity  could  do  was  done  to  make  the 
people  think  the  new  bills  had  real  value,  although 
the  old  had  none. 

In  effect,  the  scheme  was  a  substitution  of  the 
credit  of  the  States  for  the  lost  credit  of  the  United 
States.  The  States  could  levy  taxes  and  hence  had 
the  means  of  meeting  their  obligations;  the  United 
States  could  not  levy  taxes  and  was  dependent  upon 
loans  or  upon  assessments,  to  which  the  States  could 
respond  as  they  pleased.  The  act  of  1780  was  too 
dependent  upon  State  co-operation  to  provide  much 
revenue,  and  what  bills  were  issued  under  its  pro 
visions  soon  began  to  sink  in  value.  In  the  spring 
of  1781  State  notes  were  officially  rated  as  3  to  1  in 
specie  and  Continental  notes  at  175  to  1.  Conti 
nental  notes  were  actually  rated  at  525  to  1  before 
they  went  out  of  circulation  altogether.  In  May, 
1781,  men  marched  through  the  streets  of  Philadel- 


CRUMBLING  OF  THE  FEDERATION    145 

phia  with  cockades  in  their  hats  made  of  twists  of 
paper  money,  and  a  dog,  led  in  the  procession,  was 
tarred  and  plastered  over  with  paper  money. 

The  Yorktown  campaign  was  made  possible  by 
the  creation  of  the  treasury  department,  managed 
by  Robert  Morris,  and  by  the  money  and  supplies 
which  France  then  became  willing  to  send.  But 
Congress  had  been  very  reluctant  to  let  go  its  own 
custody  of  the  treasury  and  yielded  only  because 
there  was  no  longer  any  way  of  getting  money 
through  its  own  devices.  While  willing  to  let  Mor 
ris  borrow  money  wherever  he  could  get  it,  the  mem 
bers  could  not  be  depended  on  to  support  any 
scheme  of  taxation.  He  took  office  with  the  expec 
tation  that  the  States  would  allow  Congress  to  levy 
five  per  cent  upon  imports.  Virginia  at  once  as 
sented,  but  later  rescinded  its  action,  and  accord 
ing  to  a  statement  in  one  of  Madison's  letters  this 
change  of  attitude  was  due  to  influence  exerted  by 
Arthur  Lee,  a  member  of  Congress.  Massachusetts 
and  Rhode  Island  remonstrated  against  the  impost. 
In  general,  the  attitude  of  New  England  was  strongly 
against  any  taxing  authority  other  than  that  of  each 
State  in  its  own  area.  Samuel  Adams  was  opposed 
to  the  very  existence  of  a  national  treasury  depart 
ment  and  made  gloomy  prognostications  as  to  its 
effect  on  the  liberties  of  the  people. 

This,  then,  was  the  national  situation  when  Ham 
ilton  entered  Congress:  an  empty  treasury,  no  tax- 


146  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ing  power,  no  credit,  no  resources  save  those  ob 
tained  by  borrowing  or  begging.  Although  the 
theory  of  the  existing  union  was  that  the  cost  of  the 
general  government  would  be  met  by  assessments 
upon  the  States,  each  State  might  judge  for  itself 
of  the  fairness  of  its  quota  and  act  accordingly. 
The  best  record  for  1782  was  made  by  Rhode  Island, 
which  paid  about  one-fourth  of  its  quota;  Pennsyl 
vania  came  next,  with  over  a  fifth  paid;  next,  Mas 
sachusetts,  with  about  an  eighth;  then  Virginia, 
about  a  twelfth,  with  the  excuse  of  war  ravages  for 
delinquency;  New  York  and  Maryland,  each  about 
a  twentieth;  New  Hampshire,  about  a  one  hundred 
and  twenty-first  part;  North  Carolina,  Delaware, 
and  Georgia  nothing  at  all.  South  Carolina  was 
the  only  State  credited  with  full  payment  of  its 
quota,  and  that  was  because  it  was  credited  with 
supplies  to  the  troops  serving  there. 

Congressional  financiering  gave  great  opportunity 
to  rogues.  The  Pennsylvania  Packet  of  April  17, 
1779,  published  a  letter  from  a  young  lady  stating 
that  her  trustee  had  taken  advantage  of  the  legal- 
tender  acts  to  pay  her  the  principal  of  her  inheri 
tance  in  depreciated  currency.  Transactions  of  that 
character  were  going  on  all  the  time.  Merchants 
and  farmers  could  protect  themselves  to  some  extent 
by  refusing  to  make  sales  except  for  goods  of  real 
value.  The  troops  were,  however,  helpless  victims. 
A  memorial  of  Virginia  officers  in  November,  1781, 


CRUMBLING  OF  THE  FEDERATION     147 

stated  that  the  depreciation  of  the  currency  in 
which  they  were  paid  was  such  that  the  actual  value 
of  what  they  received  was  then  $3%  a  month  for  a 
colonel;  $1.66  for  a  captain,  and  20  cents  for  a  pri 
vate.  In  the  same  month  Robert  Morris  wrote 
that  the  government  was  no  longer  able  to  buy 
anything  with  its  paper  money.1 

Upon  this  scene  of  distress,  confusion,  and  dis 
order,  Hamilton  entered  alert,  energetic,  clear 
sighted,  and  resourceful.  The  correspondence  of  the 
public  men  of  the  period  shows  that  the  general 
attitude  of  mind  was  that  of  grim  endurance,  in  the 
hope  that  Great  Britain  would  tire  of  the  struggle, 
and  then  the  different  States  might  again  manage 
their  own  affairs  as  before  the  war.  The  sorry 
plight  of  the  general  government  was  therefore  a 
matter  of  only  temporary  concern,  and  meanwhile 
it  would  not  be  a  matter  of  vital  importance,  if 
France  should  continue  her  aid.  Early  in  his  con 
gressional  term  Hamilton  wrote  a  long  letter  to  the 
Vicomte  de  Noailles,  who  had  returned  to  France, 
giving  him  an  account  of  the  military  and  political 
situation,  in  which  he  admitted  that  "the  capital 
successes  we  have  had,  have  served  rather  to  in 
crease  the  hopes  than  the  exertions  of  the  particular 
States."  Things  were  "in  a  mending  way"  through 


1  The  most  complete  account  of  the  financial  situation  during  the 
Confederation  period  is  contained  in  W.  G.  Simmer's  The  Financier 
and  the  Finances  of  the  American  Revolution. 


148  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Robert  Morris's  banking  arrangements,  "but  upon 
the  whole,  however,  if  the  war  continues  another 
year,  it  will  be  necessary  that  Congress  should  again 
recur  to  the  generosity  of  France  for  pecuniary 
assistance." 

Hamilton  sent  a  letter  of  like  tenor,  but  more 
familiar  in  style,  to  Lafayette,  who  also  was  then 
back  in  France.  Said  Hamilton:  "These  States  are 
in  no  humor  for  continuing  exertions;  if  the  war 
lasts  it  must  be  carried  on  by  external  succors.  I 
make  no  apology  for  the  inertness  of  this  country. 
I  detest  it,  but  since  it  exists  I  am  sorry  to  see 
other  resources  diminish."  This  was  an  allusion  to 
the  withdrawal  of  the  French  troops. 

While  doing  what  he  could  to  induce  France  to 
continue  its  aid,  Hamilton  was  well  aware  that  this 
was  asking  that  country  to  tax  its  people  for  the 
support  of  a  country  that  was  unwilling  to  tax  its 
own  people  for  its  own  support.  Morris  was  trying 
hard  to  carry  the  five  per  cent  impost.  It  was  his 
belief  that  its  prospects  hinged  on  the  consent  of 
Rhode  Island,  which  in  the  days  before  railroads 
occupied  a  position  of  peculiar  advantage  with 
respect  to  New  England  commerce.  Under  date  of 
November  30,  1782,  the  Speaker  of  the  Rhode 
Island  Assembly  wrote  to  Congress  stating  the  rea 
sons  of  that  State  for  refusing.  They  were  to  the 
effect  that  the  impost  scheme  would  allow  Congress 
to  introduce  officers  into  the  State,  unknown  to  and 


CRUMBLING  OF  THE  FEDERATION    149 

unaccountable  to  the  State,  and  would  permit  Con 
gress  to  collect  money  from  the  commerce  of  the 
State,  for  the  expenditure  of  which  Congress  would 
not  be  accountable  to  the  State.  The  argument 
put  Congress  in  the  same  position  formerly  assigned 
to  the  British  Parliament,  as  a  body  making  uncon 
stitutional  pretensions. 

The  answer  of  Congress  to  these  objections  was 
written  by  Hamilton.  It  pointed  out  that  the  posi 
tion  taken  by  Rhode  Island  "would  defeat  all  the 
provisions  of  the  Confederation,  all  the  purposes  of 
the  Union.  The  truth  is  that  no  Federal  Constitu 
tion  can  exist  without  powers  that,  in  their  exercise, 
affect  the  internal  police  of  the  component  mem 
bers."  The  reply  went  on  to  show  how  impossible 
it  would  be  to  obtain  foreign  loans  unless  Congress 
was  in  a  position  to  offer  security.  "We  must 
pledge  an  ascertained  fund;  simple  and  productive 
in  its  nature,  general  in  its  principle,  and  at  the  dis 
posal  of  a  single  will.  There  can  be  little  confidence 
in  a  security  under  the  constant  revisal  of  thirteen 
different  deliberations.  It  must,  once  for  all,  be 
defined  and  established  on  the  faith  of  the  States 
solemnly  pledged  to  each  other,  and  not  revocable 
by  any  without  a  breach  of  the  general  compact." 

All  this  is  an  assertion  of  national  authority 
against  a  claim  of  State  sovereignty.  But  Hamilton 
was  not  content  with  merely  making  the  point.  He 
proceeded  to  emphasize  it.  Rhode  Island  contended 


150  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

that  it  was  necessary  for  each  State  to  keep  all  col 
lection  of  revenue  within  its  own  borders  in  its  own 
hands,  to  protect  itself  against  the  possibility  of 
exorbitant  demands  by  Congress.  Hamilton  made 
the  square  reply  that  this  was  a  point  on  which  the 
States  "have  no  constitutional  liberty  to  judge. 
Such  a  refusal  would  be  an  exertion  of  power;  not  of 
right."  He  went  on  to  show  that  the  very  idea  of 
a  general  government  implied  that  the  security  of 
the  public  was  through  representation  in  Congress, 
and  not  through  the  interposition  of  State  authority. 
After  this  sharp  assertion  of  principle,  the  document 
made  an  appeal  to  interest  by  pointing  out  the 
immediate  benefits  that  would  accrue  from  the 
measure. 

Although  Hamilton  was  able  to  present  a  case 
that  was  logically  complete  it  was  practically  defec 
tive,  as  he  was  keenly  aware.  Congress  could  say 
ought,  but  could  not  say  must.  It  could  exert  influ 
ence,  but  it  could  not  wield  power;  and,  as  Washing 
ton  pithily  observed,  "influence  is  not  government." 
What  influence  Congress  had  possessed  had  declined 
because  of  its  record  of  waste,  extravagance,  and 
mismanagement;  and,  moreover,  it  was  impaired  by 
the  fact  that  the  members  themselves  were  apt  to 
regard  Congress  as  a  diplomatic  assembly  in  which 
they  looked  after  the  particular  interests  of  their 
own  States,  rather  than  as  a  national  legislature. 
This  tendency  was  prominently  displayed  by  an  in- 


CRUMBLING  OF  THE  FEDERATION    151 

cident  in  connection  with  the  Rhode  Island  negotia 
tion.  A  Boston  newspaper  published  a  statement 
— promptly  copied  by  Rhode  Island  papers — that 
there  was  no  longer  any  need  for  an  impost  since  a 
foreign  loan  had  been  arranged.  This  was  true  to 
the  extent  that  a  loan  was  being  negotiated  in  Hol 
land,  but  it  was  quite  untrue  that  it  was  enough  to 
enable  Congress  to  meet  its  engagements.  It  was 
rumored  that  a  member  of  Congress  was  the  source 
of  this  report  and  an  investigation  was  voted,  where 
upon  David  Howell  declared  himself  to  be  the 
author.  He  was  a  Princeton  graduate,  serving  his 
first  term  in  Congress,  of  which  he  was  a  member 
from  1782  to  1785.  In  1790  he  became  professor  of 
law  in  Brown  University.  When  a  man  of  his 
standing  could  pursue  such  a  course,  it  shows  how 
strong  particularist  tendencies  were  at  that  period. 
In  fact,  Hamilton's  assertion  of  national  ideals  met 
with  little  genuine  support  in  Congress.  In  debate, 
about  this  time,  Hamilton  observed  that  one  reason 
why  the  government  should  have  its  own  revenue 
collected  by  its  own  agents  was  that  "as  the  energy 
of  the  federal  government  was  evidently  short  of  the 
degree  necessary  for  pervading  and  uniting  the 
States,  it  was  expedient  to  introduce  the  influence  of 
officers  deriving  their  emoluments  from,  and,  con 
sequently,  interested  in  supporting,  the  power  of 
Congress."  Madison  relates  that  the  members 
"smiled  at  the  disclosure."  Madison's  record  is, 


152  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

then,  evidence  that,  at  a  time  when  Congress  was  in 
clined  to  acquiesce  in  conditions  of  dependence  on 
State  aid,  Hamilton  grasped  the  problem  in  its  en 
tirety  as  being  the  creation  of  national  authority 
and  he  insisted  upon  honest  statement  of  it.  His 
reference  to  the  mode  of  collection  was  no  slip  of 
the  tongue.  A  little  later,  February  12,  1783,  he 
moved  the  following,  in  which  the  marks  of  emphasis 
are  his  own: 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  Congress  that  com 
plete  JUSTICE  cannot  be  done  to  the  creditors  of  the 
United  States,  nor  the  restoration  of  PUBLIC  CREDIT 
be  effected,  nor  the  future  exigencies  of  the  war  provided 
for,  but  by  the  establishment  of  permanent  and  adequate 
funds  to  operate  generally  throughout  the  United  States, 
to  be  collected  by  Congress. 

John  Rutledge,  of  South  Carolina,  with  a  view  to 
softening  the  opposition,  moved  that  the  impost 
should  be  applied  only  to  the  support  of  the  army. 
Hamilton  at  once  dissented.  He  "would  never 
assent  to  such  a  partial  administration  of  justice," 
and,  moreover,  "it  was  impolitic  to  divide  the  in 
terests  of  the  civil  and  military  creditors,  whose 
joint  efforts  in  the  states  would  be  necessary  to  pre 
vail  on  them  to  adopt  a  general  revenue."  It 
plainly  appears  from  this  that  Hamilton  had  firmly 
grasped  the  principle  that  the  true  constitution  of  a 
country  is  the  actual  distribution  of  political  force, 


CRUMBLING  OF  THE  FEDERATION    153 

and  to  understand  his  statesmanship  this  should  be 
kept  in  mind. 

Washington's  attitude  was  of  such  central  impor 
tance  that  his  correspondence  at  this  period  reflects 
all  the  political  currents  of  the  times.  The  most 
impetuous  was  that  issuing  from  the  army,  where 
the  feeling  was  strong  that  unless  they  looked  out 
for  themselves  the  politicians  would  bilk  them.  In 
communications  received  by  Washington  there  was 
much  in  the  way  of  deploring  and  trusting  and  hop 
ing,  but  nothing  that  exhibits  plan  or  direction  until 
Hamilton  entered,  which  was  not  until  February  7, 
1783.  The  rupture  that  had  occurred  when  Hamil 
ton  resigned  his  military  secretaryship  had  mean 
while  stopped  their  intimacy.  But  Hamilton  could 
not  proceed  with  his  plans  without  Washington's 
co-operation,  and  this  he  now  endeavored  to  secure. 
"Flattering  myself/'  he  wrote,  "that  your  knowl 
edge  of  me  will  induce  you  to  receive  the  observa 
tions  I  make  as  dictated  by  a  regard  to  the  public 
good,  I  take  the  liberty  to  suggest  to  you  my  ideas 
on  some  matters  of  delicacy  and  importance."  After 
this  deferential  approach,  he  made  a  plain  state 
ment  of  the  actual  situation,  showing  that  "there 
has  scarcely  been  a  period  of  the  Revolution  which 
called  more  for  wisdom  and  decision  in  Congress. 
Unfortunately  for  us,  we  are  a  body  not  governed 
by  reason  or  foresight  but  by  circumstances."  He 
pointed  out  that  the  attitude  of  the  army  was  a 


154  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

prime  factor  in  the  situation.  "The  claims  of  the 
army,  urged  with  moderation  but  with  firmness, 
may  operate  on  those  weak  minds  which  are  influ 
enced  by  their  apprehensions  more  than  by  their 
judgments.  .  .  .  But  the  difficulty  will  be  to  keep 
a  complaining  and  suffering  army  within  the  bounds 
of  moderation."  Hamilton  then  gave  Washington 
some  advice  as  to  his  own  behavior.  "It  is  of  mo 
ment  to  the  public  tranquillity  that  your  Excellency 
should  preserve  the  confidence  of  the  army,  without 
losing  that  of  the  people.  This  will  enable  you  in 
case  of  extremity  to  guide  the  torrent,  and  to  bring 
order,  perhaps  even  good,  out  of  confusion."  He 
suggested  that  it  would  "be  advisable  not  to  dis 
countenance  their  endeavors  to  procure  redress,  but 
rather,  by  the  intervention  of  confidential  and  pru 
dent  persons,  to  take  the  direction  of  them."  Wash 
ington's  attention  was  then  called  to  the  fact  that 
there  was  an  idea  in  the  army  that  he  was  not 
"espousing  its  interests  with  sufficient  warmth." 

The  phrase  which  Hamilton  emphasized  is  the 
point  to  which  the  letter  is  addressed.  It  was  a 
tactful  instruction  to  Washington  from  one  much 
his  junior.  Washington  was  then  but  a  fortnight 
short  of  fifty-one,  and  he  was  already  world-famous; 
Hamilton  had  just  turned  twenty-six,  and  he  was 
barely  started  in  his  profession  as  a  lawyer.  Wash 
ington,  than  whom  no  man  known  to  history  had 
more  magnanimity,  not  merely  took  Hamilton's 


CRUMBLING  OF  THE  FEDERATION     155 

suggestions  in  good  part  but  at  once  entered  into 
confidential  relations.  He  laid  aside  the  cautious 
reserve  which  characterizes  his  replies  to  all  other 
correspondents;  and  opened  his  heart  to  Hamilton 
about  his  troubles.  He  remarked:  "The  predica 
ment,  in  which  I  stand  as  a  citizen  and  as  a  soldier, 
is  as  critical  and  delicate  as  can  well  be  conceived." 
He  declared  that  for  several  months  his  behavior 
had  been  in  accord  with  the  suggestions  now  made 
by  Hamilton,  and  he  had  not  much  fear  now  that 
army  sentiment  would  exceed  "the  bounds  of  reason 
and  moderation." 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  required  all  the  influence 
that  Washington  could  exert  to  prevent  an  outbreak, 
but  enough  money  was  scraped  up  by  Morris  to  give 
the  troops  a  payment  on  account,  sufficient  to  induce 
them  to  accept  the  proposed  furlough,  as  it  was 
called,  although  it  was  really  a  disbandment.  Keep 
ing  in  close  and  frequent  correspondence  with  Wash 
ington,  Hamilton  took  a  leading  part  in  all  these 
proceedings.  He  was  chairman  of  the  committee 
of  three  appointed  by  Congress  to  deal  with  the 
situation  created  by  the  mutiny  of  certain  troops 
at  Philadelphia  and  at  Lancaster,  and  he  was  prompt 
and  vigorous  in  his  measures.  He  wrote  a  Vindica 
tion  of  Congress,  in  which  he  pointed  out  that  the 
system  was  more  at  fault  than  those  who  labored 
under  it.  "On  the  one  hand  they  are  blamed  for 
not  doing  what  they  have  no  means  of  doing;  on 


156  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

the  other,  their  attempts  are  branded  with  the  im 
putation  of  a  spirit  of  encroachment  and  a  lust  of 
power."  He  urged  that  "in  these  circumstances,  it 
is  the  duty  of  all  those  who  have  the  welfare  of  the 
community  at  heart  to  unite  their  efforts  to  direct 
the  attention  of  the  people  to  the  true  source  of  the 
public  disorders — the  want  of  an  EFFICIENT  GENERAL 

GOVERNMENT." 

This  was  Hamilton's  main  object  during  his  con 
gressional  career,  but  when  it  became  manifest  that 
nothing  more  could  then  be  done  in  that  direction 
his  longing  to  be  with  his  family  became  irrepressi 
ble.  Under  date  of  July  22,  1783,  he  wrote  to  his 
wife  that  he  would  soon  start  for  home. 

I  am  strongly  urged  to  stay  a  few  days  for  the  ratifica 
tion  of  the  treaty;  at  all  events,  however,  I  will  not  be 
long  absent.  I  give  you  joy  of  the  happy  conclusion  of 
this  important  work  in  which  your  country  has  been 
engaged.  Now  in  a  very  short  time  we  shall  be  happily 
settled  in  New  York.  .  .  .  Kiss  my  boy  a  thousand  times. 

After  he  got  back  to  Albany  he  gathered  up  some 
loose  ends  of  his  congressional  work.  In  one  of  his 
letters  to  Washington,  in  the  spring  of  1783,  Hamil 
ton  had  observed: 

It  now  only  remains  to  make  solid  establishments 
within,  to  perpetuate  our  Union,  to  prevent  our  being  a 
ball  in  the  hands  of  European  powers,  bandied  against 
each  other  at  their  pleasure;  in  fine,  to  make  our  indepen- 


CRUMBLING  OF  THE  FEDERATION    157 

dence  truly  a  blessing.  ...  I  will  add  that  your  excel 
lency's  exertions  are  as  essential  to  accomplish  this  end 
as  they  have  been  to  establish  independence.  I  will  upon 
a  future  occasion  open  myself  upon  this  subject. 

Writing  from  Albany;  September  30,  he  recalled 
this  promise;  and  went  on  to  explain: 

At  the  time  I  was  in  hopes  Congress  might  have  been 
induced  to  take  a  decisive  ground;  to  inform  their  con 
stituents  of  the  imperfections  of  the  present  system,  and 
of  the  impossibility  of  conducting  the  public  affairs  with 
honor  to  themselves  and  advantage  to  the  community, 
with  powers  so  disproportionate  to  their  responsibility; 
and  having  done  this,  in  a  full  and  forcible  manner,  to 
adjourn  the  moment  the  definitive  treaty  was  ratified.  In 
retiring  at  the  same  juncture,  I  wished  you,  in  a  solemn 
manner,  to  declare  to  the  people  your  intended  retreat 
from  public  concerns,  your  opinion  of  the  present  govern 
ment,  and  of  the  absolute  necessity  of  a  change. 

Before  I  left  Congress  I  despaired  of  the  first,  and  your 
circular  letter  to  the  States  had  anticipated  the  last.  I 
trust  it  will  not  be  without  effect,  though  I  am  persuaded 
it  would  have  had  more,  combined  with  what  I  have  men 
tioned.  At  all  events,  without  compliment,  Sir,  it  will 
do  you  honor  with  the  sensible  and  well-meaning;  and 
ultimately,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  with  the  people  at  large, 
when  the  present  epidemic  frenzy  has  subsided. 

This  letter  makes  an  interesting  disclosure  of  the 
reach  of  Hamilton's  political  strategy  and  also  of 
its  wariness.  The  resolutions  he  prepared  for  Con 
gress  were  found  among  his  papers,  indorsed,  "In- 


158  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

tended  to  be  submitted  to  Congress  in  seventeen 
hundred  and  eighty-three,  but  abandoned  for  want 
of  support."  The  document  is  a  complete  analysis 
of  the  defects  of  government,  digested  under  twelve 
heads,  concluding  with  a  call  for  a  constitutional 
convention.  But  Hamilton  correctly  judged  that 
the  time  was  not  propitious  for  the  national  move 
ment,  and  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  delay  mat 
ters  until  the  teachings  of  experience  had  begun  to 
produce  effect.  Meanwhile  he  made  a  gallant  fight 
against  the  spread  of  the  "epidemic  frenzy"  in  the 
politics  of  his  own  State. 


CHAPTER  XII 
LAW  PRACTICE 

IT  can  scarcely  be  called  to  mind  too  frequently  that 
while  Hamilton  was  lavishly  spending  his  powers  for 
the  public  good,  he  was  a  poor  man  with  the  bread- 
and-butter  problem  always  before  him.  In  May, 
1783,  he  wrote  to  Governor  Clinton  that  it  would  be 
very  injurious  to  him  to  remain  in  Congress  much 
longer,  and  that,  "having  no  future  views  in  public 
life,  I  owe  it  to  myself  without  delay  to  enter  upon 
the  care  of  my  private  concerns  in  earnest." 

New  York  was  evacuated  by  the  British  in  No 
vember,  1783,  and  soon  after  Hamilton  settled  there 
to  practise  his  profession,  opening  his  office  at  No. 
58  Wall  Street.  Claims  arising  out  of  transactions 
during  the  war  produced  a  great  crop  of  cases.  In 
those  days  there  was  no  specialization  and  Hamilton 
took  both  civil  and  criminal  cases,  so  that  at  one 
time  he  might  be  in  the  mayor's  court  and  again  in 
the  highest  court  in  the  State.  He  was  at  one  time 
counsel  for  the  defendant  in  a  rape  case,  and  he  also 
figured  in  assault  and  murder  cases.  The  rapidity 
with  which  he  gained  distinction  at  the  bar  is  attested 
by  the  fact  that  so  early  as  1784  he  began  to  receive 
applications  for  admission  of  law  students  to  his 

159 


160  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

office.  Such  students  paid  a  fee  of  $150,  and  were 
rated  as  clerks.  Hamilton's  office  books  note  in  his 
own  handwriting  that  one  such  fee  was  returned  be 
cause  the  pupil  "did  not  continue  his  clerkship. " 
That  of  itself  did  not  require  a  refund;  but  Hamilton 
always  displayed  a  generous  consideration  for  peo 
ple's  circumstances.  In  1796,  when  he  was  at  the 
height  of  his  professional  renown,  a  client  offered 
him  $1,000  as  a  general  retainer,  without  any  case 
then  pending.  The  letter  bears  Hamilton's  indorse 
ment,  " Returned  as  being  more  than  is  proper." 

It  appears  from  his  office  records  that  for  many 
years  his  office  fee  was  only  £l  10s.,  and  that  was 
his  usual  charge  for  drawing  a  petition  or  giving 
legal  advice  in  an  ordinary  case.  He  charged  £5  a 
day  for  trying  a  case  in  court.  It  appears  that  he 
was  not  above  taking  a  contingent  fee,  for  the  receipt 
of  $100  is  noted  with  the  remark,  "if  successful  an 
additional  hundred."  Although  he  was  associated 
in  many  cases  with  his  friend,  Robert  Troup,  Hamil 
ton  took  as  his  law  partner  Balthazar  De  Heart,  a 
circumstance  readily  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that 
De  Heart  appears  to  have  been  what  is  now  known 
as  a  managing  clerk.  The  arrangement  really 
meant  that  Hamilton  desired  individual  freedom  of 
action  as  a  lawyer. 

Among  Hamilton's  early  cases  is  one  that  is  de 
servedly  famous,  both  from  the  massiveness  and 
solidity  of  his  argument  in  support  of  national 


LAW  PRACTICE  161 

authority,  and  also  as  displaying  his  dauntless  cour 
age  in  confronting  a  furious  popular  opposition. 
By  the  treaty  of  peace  with  England  it  was  pro 
vided  that  there  should  be  no  more  confiscations  or 
prosecutions  on  account  of  the  side  taken  in  the 
war,  and  that  no  person  should  thereby  "  suffer  any 
future  loss  or  damage,  either  in  his  person,  liberty, 
or  property."  Among  the  vindictive  measures 
passed  by  the  New  York  Whigs  against  the  loyalists 
was  the  act  of  March  17,  1783,  providing  that  loy 
alists  who  had  occupied  Whig  property  by  British 
authority,  might  be  sued  for  trespass  and  held  liable 
for  arrears  of  rent.  This  was  dead  against  the 
treaty  stipulations  and  was  known  to  be  so  when 
enacted.  The  effect  of  the  treaty  in  restricting 
State  action  was  pointed  out  by  the  American  com 
missioners,  in  transmitting  a  copy  from  Paris,  De 
cember  14,  1782,  and  they  had  distinctly  asserted 
that  in  their  opinion  Congress  was  supreme  in  this 
matter.  It  fell  to  Hamilton  to  be  the  first  to  main 
tain  this  principle  in  practice  and  secure  for  it  ju 
dicial  sanction. 

Although  the  issue  involved  the  whole  question 
of  national  sovereignty,  the  particular  case  in  which 
it  was  raised  was  as  disadvantageous  as  could  be  for 
the  purpose  of  securing  a  thoughtful  and  just  deci 
sion — the  plaintiff  a  widow,  the  defendant  a  firm  of 
brewers  who  had  carried  on  their  business  as  British 
subjects.  In  1778  they  had  rented  a  brewery  and 


162  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

malt  house  on  Maiden  Lane,  at  a  rent  of  £150  per 
annum,  which  they  paid  to  a  person  designated  by 
the  British  commander.  They  had  to  make  con 
siderable  outlay  in  fitting  the  property  for  use,  and 
were  still  carrying  on  the  business  when  in  Novem 
ber,  1783,  the  city  again  passed  under  American 
control.  They  were  quite  ready  to  pay  the  rent  to 
any  person  who  could  legally  receipt  for  it,  and  at 
once  complied  with  an  order  from  the  American 
commander  to  pay  current  dues  to  the  son  of  Mrs. 
Elizabeth  Rutgers,  the  former  owner,  who  had  now 
returned  to  claim  her  property.  But  she  wanted 
the  back  rent  also,  which  they  had  already  paid 
elsewhere  by  British  authority,  and  she  entered  suit 
under  the  trespass  act. 

The  issue,  although  deep,  was  narrow.  It  was 
simply  whether  a  treaty  obligation  contracted  by 
federal  authority  could  override  the  laws  of  the 
State  of  New  York.  The  widow  had  State  law  and 
popular  sentiment  on  her  side.  There  were  then  no 
federal  courts,  and,  indeed  no  federal  government 
except  the  weak  and  ailing  one  carried  on  by  the 
Continental  Congress.  The  suit  was  brought  before 
a  local  tribunal,  the  mayor's  court.  And  yet  such 
was  the  force  of  Hamilton's  reasoning  that  he  con 
vinced  the  court  and  obtained  a  judgment  in  his 
favor.  Such  ability  in  a  man  of  twenty-seven,  who 
had  been  practising  law  less  than  two  years,  seems 


LAW  PRACTICE  163 

almost  supernatural;  and,  indeed,  it  does  not  be 
come  intelligible  until  the  circumstances  are  atten 
tively  considered. 

The  only  record  that  remains  of  Hamilton's  argu 
ment  is  the  skeleton  he  used,  covering  nineteen 
pages  of  closely  written  foolscap.  Notwithstanding 
its  length,  it  contains  merely  bare  notes  of  the 
points  he  intended  to  make,  such  as 

A.  Introduction. 

Question  concerns  National  faith — char 
acter — safety — Confederation. 

B.  Serious  because  wrong  judgment  good  cause  of 

war. 

C.  Present  case  somewhat  new — law  of  reason  Pub 

lic  good — ubi  lex  tacet  judex  loquitur. 

D.  Question  embraces  the  whole  law  of  nations. 

and  so  on  through  the  letters  of  the  alphabet  until 
with  T  he  finished  his  analysis.  But  all  this  was 
introductory.  Then  followed  a  series  of  proposi 
tions,  such  as 

Judges  of  each  State  must  of  necessity  be  judges  of 

the  United  States. 
And  the  law  of  each  State  must  adopt  the  laws  of 

Congress. 
Though  in  relation  to  its  own  Citizens  local  laws 

might  govern,  yet  in  relation  to  foreigners  those 

of  United  States  must  prevail. 


164  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Under  the  subhead  " Principles"  he  enters  into  an 
extended  examination  of  the  law  of  nations.  An 
other  section  is  devoted  to  "  Rules  of  Construction 
of  Statutes."  Evidently  he  prepared  his  argument 
with  the  utmost  thoroughness  and  care,  so  as  to 
explore  the  whole  field  of  law  touched  by  the  case. 
It  now  seems  odd  that  the  mayor's  court  should 
have  been  the  forum  for  such  an  argument,  but  not 
so  in  those  times.  The  mayor,  recorder,  sheriff, 
coroner,  and  town  clerk  were  all  at  that  time  ap 
pointed  by  the  governor  of  the  State.  James 
Duane,  who  was  appointed  mayor,  February  7, 
1784,  was  a  man  of  wealth  and  high  social  position. 
During  the  war  he  had  had  terms  of  service  in  the 
New  York  Provincial  Congress,  in  the  Continental 
Congress,  and  in  the  State  Senate.  Eventually, 
under  Washington's  administration,  he  became  the 
first  United  States  judge  of  the  district  of  New  York. 
The  recorder,  the  chief  judicial  officer,  was  Richard 
Varick,  who  had  been  Washington's  private  secre 
tary  during  the  latter  part  of  the  war.  It  therefore 
appears  that  the  mayor's  court  was  then  so  officered 
that  any  question  of  public  obligation  could  count 
upon  appreciative  consideration.  The  case  turned 
on  the  question  whether  or  not  the  authority  under 
which  the  defendants  had  acted  could  be  pleaded 
against  the  claim.  By  the  law  of  the  State  that 
plea  was  inadmissible.  The  real  point  which  the 
court  had  to  decide  was  whether  the  treaty  over- 


LAW  PRACTICE  165 

ruled  the  State  inhibition,  and  its  judgment  went 
straight  to  that  point.     The  court  declared: 

Our  Union,  as  has  been  properly  observed,  is  known, 
and  legalized  in  our  Constitution,  and  adopted  as  a  fun 
damental  law  in  the  first  act  of  our  legislature.  The  fed 
eral  compact  hath  vested  Congress  with  full  and  exclusive 
powers  to  make  peace  and  war.  This  treaty  they  have 
made  and  ratified,  and  rendered  its  obligation  perpetual; 
and  we  are  clearly  of  opinion,  that  no  State  in  this  union 
can  alter  or  abridge,  in  a  single  point,  the  federal  articles 
or  the  treaty. 

Such  a  decision  at  such  a  time  was  a  brave  act. 
Local  sentiment  was  strongly  in  favor  of  proscribing 
all  who  had  been  on  the  Tory  side  during  the  war. 
General  Lamb  and  others  who  had  been  active 
"Sons  of  Liberty,"  the  organization  to  which  Ham 
ilton  had  attached  himself  while  a  college  student, 
were  now  determined  to  push  Whig  triumph  to  the 
uttermost,  despite  the  treaty.  A  mass  meeting  was 
held  at  which  an  address  was  adopted  exhorting  the 
people  "to  elect  men  who  would  spurn  any  proposi 
tion  that  had  a  tendency  to  curtail  the  privileges  of 
the  people,  and  who  would  protect  them  from  judi 
cial  tyranny."  In  fact,  hi  the  first  election  after  the 
peace  the  party  of  vengeance  swept  the  polls.  Gen 
eral  Lamb  and  other  active  partisans  were  elected 
members  of  the  Assembly,  in  which  their  influence 
was  so  supreme  that  resolutions  were  passed  calling 
upon  the  Governor  and  Council  "to  appoint  such 


166  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

persons  as  will  govern  themselves  by  the  known  law 
of  the  land."  The  Assembly  by  a  vote  of  32  to  9 
passed  a  bill  declaring  a  "  certain  description  of  per 
sons  without  the  protection  of  the  laws  of  this 
State";  and  the  Senate,  without  material  amend 
ment,  passed  it  by  a  vote  of  10  to  6.  A  like  wave 
of  rancor  swept  other  States.  In  Virginia  the  House 
of  Delegates  declared  that  any  return  of  confiscated 
property  was  wholly  inadmissible,  and  that  "laws 
made  by  any  independent  State  of  this  Union" 
should  not  be  "subject  to  the  adjudication  of  any 
power  or  powers  on  earth."  In  New  Jersey  meetings 
were  held  urging  non-compliance  with  the  treaty  of 
peace.  In  Massachusetts  a  committee  of  the  legis 
lature,  of  which  Samuel  Adams  was  chairman,  re 
ported  that  no  person  who  had  borne  arms  against 
the  United  States,  or  lent  money  to  the  enemy  to 
carry  on  the  war,  should  ever  be  permitted  to  return 
to  the  State.  A  spirit  of  proscription,  resembling 
in  its  malignity  that  which  characterized  a  victorious 
faction  in  the  civil  wars  of  Greece  and  Rome,  was 
abroad  in  America. 

Hamilton's  action  in  pleading  treaty  obligations 
in  behalf  of  clients,  against  State  law,  might  have 
secured  some  indulgence  as  a  performance  of  pro 
fessional  duty,  although  even  then  it  was  a  hazard 
ous  proceeding  in  the  existing  state  of  sentiment. 
Later  on,  after  he  had  led  the  way,  lawyers  generally 
employed  that  argument,  among  them  Giles  of 


LAW  PRACTICE  167 

Virginia,  who  eventually  became  Hamilton's  most 
active  congressional  foe.  But  Hamilton  not  only 
stemmed  the  tide  at  its  flood,  but  he  carried  the 
issue  from  the  court  into  the  public  forum.  While 
the  legislature  was  passing  disfranchisement  acts 
and  prescribing  test  oaths,  Hamilton  wrote  an  ap 
peal  "to  the  Considerate  Citizens  of  New  York,  on 
the  Politics  of  the  Times,  in  Consequence  of  the 
Peace."  This  letter,  signed  "Phocion,"  is  more  im 
passioned  in  its  style  than  was  usual  with  him,  and 
was  done  in  a  rush,  for  he  concluded  with  an  apol 
ogy  for  "the  hasty  and  incorrect  manner."  The 
letter  was  a  sharp  rebuke  to  the  violent  counsels 
then  prevailing,  with  some  pointed  advice  that  it 
was  a  mistake  to  think  that  spite  and  malevolence 
could  now  have  their  way  without  risk.  "  Suppose," 
he  asked,  "Great  Britain  should  be  induced  to  refuse 
a  further  compliance  with  the  treaty,  in  consequence 
of  a  breach  of  it  on  our  part;  what  situation  should 
we  be  in  ?  Can  we  renew  the  war  to  compel  a  com 
pliance  ?  We  know  and  all  the  world  knows,  it  is 
out  of  our  power."  Nor  could  other  powers  be  ex 
pected  to  come  to  America's  aid  as  before.  "They 
will  not  think  themselves  bound  to  undertake  an 
unjust  war,  to  regain  to  us  rights  which  we  have 
forfeited  by  a  childish  levity,  and  a  wanton  con 
tempt  of  public  faith.  We  should  then  have  sacri 
ficed  important  interests  to  the  little,  vindictive, 
selfish,  mean  passions  of  a  few." 


168  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Most  of  the  leading  men  in  the  War  of  the  Revo 
lution  felt  about  the  matter  just  as  Hamilton  did, 
but  he  was  the  only  man  who  dared  to  come  out  and 
say  so.  The  peculiar  heroism  of  his  statesmanship 
is  his  utter  fearlessness  of  unpopularity.  Public  men 
are  apt  to  shrink  from  that,  and  face  it  only  when 
brought  to  bay;  but  Hamilton  seems  never  to  have 
hesitated  to  brave  it  whenever  a  political  issue  ap 
peared  to  him  to  involve  the  honor  of  his  country. 
That  is  not  a  trait  by  which  American  politicians 
get  ahead,  and  it  worked  against  Hamilton's  per 
sonal  success  in  public  life.  His  achievements  were 
all  accomplished  by  sheer  force  of  intellect;  his  career 
owed  nothing  to  popular  favor. 

Hamilton's  letter  attracted  so  much  attention 
that  the  party  of  proscription  felt  that  some  justifica 
tion  of  their  policy  was  desirable,  and  this  was  sup 
plied  by  Isaac  Ledyard,  a  State  politician  of  some 
prominence,  writing  over  the  signature  of  "  Mentor." 
His  letter  adopted  a  judicial  tone,  and  by  applying 
rigorous  strict-construction  principles  to  the  lan 
guage  of  the  treaty,  concluded  that  it  was  still  within 
the  power  of  the  States  to  exclude  such  as  would  be 
undesirable  citizens.  Hamilton's  reply  is  a  more 
solid  performance  than  his  first  letter.  He  made  a 
detailed  analysis  of  the  subject,  and  he  entered  into 
an  inquiry  into  the  nature  of  constitutional  author 
ity  and  the  true  principles  of  government.  In  con 
clusion,  he  made  a  powerful  appeal  to  patriotic  feel- 


LAW  PRACTICE  169 

ing.  "Those  who  are  at  present  entrusted  with 
power,  in  all  these  infant  republics,  hold  the  most 
sacred  deposit  that  ever  was  confided  to  human 
hands.  Tis  with  governments  as  with  individuals; 
first  impressions  and  early  habits  give  a  lasting  bias 
to  the  temper  and  character.  Our  governments, 
hitherto,  have  no  habits.  How  important  to  the 
happiness,  not  of  America  alone,  but  of  mankind, 
that  they  should  acquire  good  ones ! "  He  referred 
to  the  influence  which  America  would  exert  upon 
the  world  as  a  republican  example.  Would  it  be 
such  as  to  show  the  efficacy  of  self-government  or 
its  impracticability?  If  instead  of  exhibiting  jus 
tice,  moderation,  liberality,  the  public  counsels  are 
guided  by  passion  and  prejudice,  then,  with  the 
greatest  advantages  for  promoting  it  that  ever  a 
people  had,  we  shall  have  betrayed  the  cause  of 
liberty. 

Hamilton's  letters  were  printed  and  circulated  in 
other  States  and  were  republished  in  London.  Be 
sides  the  reply  of  "Mentor,"  articles  by  "Gustavus," 
"Anti-Phocionite,"  and  others  appeared,  but  Ham 
ilton's  superiority  in  any  pamphlet  war  was  so  over 
whelming  that  there  was  some  talk  of  forcing  upon 
him  a  succession  of  duels,  until  he  was  done  for. 
The  only  existing  authority  for  this  statement  is 
J.  C.  Hamilton's  biography,  which  relates  that  Led- 
yard  heard  of  the  plot  and  broke  it  up  by  his  indig 
nant  protest;  furthermore,  that  Hamilton  shook 


170  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

hands  with  Ledyard  and  thanked  htm  for  saving  his 
life.  Isaac  Q.  Leake's  memoir  of  General  John 
Lamb,  a  well-documented  work,  questions  the  accu 
racy  of  the  account  so  far  as  Ledyard  is  concerned, 
but  gives  precise  details  of  a  challenge  sent  to  Ham 
ilton  by  Colonel  Eleazer  Oswald,  subsequently  with 
drawn,  as  "the  affair  was  adjusted  honorably  to  both 
parties."  It  is  at  least  clear  that  Hamilton  took 
serious  risks  in  braving  local  sentiment  as  he  did, 
but  such  considerations  never  daunted  him  at  any 
time  in  any  way. 

All  sorts  of  professional  business  now  flowed  to 
Hamilton.  In  1784  he  organized  the  Bank  of  New 
York.  From  a  letter  of  March  10,  to  his  brother-in- 
law,  John  Barker  Church,  it  appears  that  Hamilton 
went  into  this  enterprise  to  counteract  a  land-bank 
scheme  which  was  being  urged  upon  the  legislature 
as  "the  true  philosopher's  stone  that  was  to  turn  all 
their  rocks  and  trees  into  gold."  Alarmed  by  this 
project,  New  York  merchants  started  a  subscription 
for  a  money  bank,  and  on  their  application  Hamilton 
prepared  its  constitution  and  by-laws. 

This  was  but  an  item  of  his  numerous  professional 
activities.  His  gains  by  them  did  not  dull  his  per 
ception  of  the  fact  that  much  of  the  legal  practice  of 
the  times  was  due  to  bad  government.  He  remarked 
to  a  correspondent  that  "legislative  folly  had  afforded 
so  plentiful  a  harvest  that  he  had  scarcely  a  moment 
to  spare  from  the  substantial  business  of  reaping." 


LAW  PRACTICE  171 

There  is  plenty  of  evidence  to  show  that  Hamilton 
had  taken  a  leading  rank  at  the  New  York  bar,  and 
all  he  needed  to  do  to  make  his  fortune  was  to 
keep  out  of  politics;  but  this  he  could  not  do. 


CHAPTER  XIII 
THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT 

THE  four  years  that  elapsed  between  the  end  of  the 
war  and  the  meeting  of  the  constitutional  convention 
of  1787  was  a  period  of  increasing  anarchy.  The 
only  organ  of  national  authority  was  the  Continental 
Congress,  and  that  was  profoundly  distrusted. 
Whatever  funds  it  could  get  hold  of  were  disbursed 
through  its  own  committees,  which  were  not  subject 
to  much  accountability.  The  payment  of  members 
was  supposed  to  come  from  the  States  that  sent 
them,  and  it  varied  from  time  to  time  and  from  place 
to  place,  according  to  the  disposition  of  the  State 
authorities  and  the  personal  popularity  of  a  mem 
ber.  The  Massachusetts  delegates  were  allowed  £10 
a  day  and  expenses.  An  account  of  Elbridge  Gerry 
is  on  record  which  shows  that  from  January  5,  1776, 
to  July  5,  1780,  he  was  allowed  for  his  time  and 
expenses  £40,502  6s.  and  2d.,  which  is  at  the  rate 
of  over  $44,000  a  year.  On  the  face  of  it  this  is  a 
larger  sum  than  was  charged  by  Washington  for  his 
expenses  for  eight  years  as  commander-in-chief,  but 
nominal  amounts  were  so  different  from  real  values 
that  exact  comparison  is  impossible. 

The  household  of  the  president  of  the  Continental 

172 


THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT        173 

Congress  was  maintained  by  that  body  as  a  public 
institution.  No  fixed  allowance  was  made,  but 
Congress  by  resolution  directed  that  "a  convenient, 
furnished  dwelling  house  be  hired,  and  a  table,  car 
riage  and  servants  provided  at  the  public  expense." 
The  committee  on  the  treasury  appointed  a  steward 
and  supervised  his  accounts.  The  president  was  ex 
pected  to  keep  open  house.  General  Washington 
wrote  that  "the  table  was  always  crowded,  and  with 
mixed  company,  and  the  president  considered  in  no 
better  light  than  as  a  maitre  d' hotel." 

The  profusion  which  always  surrounded  Congress 
was  one  of  the  sources  of  army  discontent.  In  1780 
Congress  raised  the  pay  of  its  principal  clerks  to 
$8,000  a  year;  of  the  auditor-general  to  $12,000;  of 
the  secretary  of  Congress  to  $14,000.  All  these  sums 
are  subject  to  large  discount,  from  the  depreciation 
of  the  currency;  but  the  army  suffered  in  the  same 
way,  and  meanwhile  could  not  get  arrears  of  pay 
due  them.  In  a  letter  to  Hamilton,  April  22,  1783, 
Washington  said:  "Let  me  assure  you  that  it  would 
not  be  more  difficult  to  still  the  raging  billows  in  a 
tempestuous  gale,  than  to  convince  the  officers  of 
this  army  of  the  justice  or  policy  of  paying  men  in 
civil  office  full  wages,  when  they  cannot  obtain  a 
sixtieth  part  of  their  dues." 

The  members  of  Congress  voted  as  States  and 
were  alert  to  see  that  in  the  distribution  of  patron 
age  each  State  got  its  share,  which,  of  course,  tended 


174  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

to  multiply  offices.  Robert  Morris  introduced 
economies  which  incurred  for  him  bitter  enmities. 
Madison  wrote  to  Jefferson,  September  20,  1783: 
"The  department  of  finance  is  an  object  of  almost 
daily  attack,  and  will  be  reduced  to  its  crisis  on  the 
final  resignation  of  Mr.  Morris,  which  will  take  place 
in  a  few  months."  In  November  Morris  wrote  to 
Jay  that  the  members  of  Congress,  instead  of  sup 
porting  him  as  they  had  promised  to  do,  were  trying 
to  frustrate  his  plans  so  as  to  ruin  him  personally. 
Early  in  1783  he  offered  his  resignation,  but  was  per 
suaded  to  stay  long  enough  to  arrange  a  settlement 
with  the  army.  Then  he  insisted  on  getting  out 
and  he  retired  on  November  1,  1784.  Congress  then 
returned  to  its  old  methods  and  put  the  treasury  in 
the  hands  of  a  board  of  three  commissioners,  one  of 
them  being  Arthur  Lee,  who  had  been  the  tireless 
enemy  of  Morris's  administration. 

The  States  were  loath  to  impose  taxes  and  collect 
money  for  such  an  irresponsible  body  as  Congress, 
and  were  apt  to  turn  sulky  when  lectured  about 
their  behavior.  In  March,  1783,  General  Greene 
wrote  a  letter  to  the  South  Carolina  Legislature, 
urging  that  something  should  be  done  for  the  public 
credit  and  for  the  support  of  the  army.  In  this  he 
did  no  more  than  he  had  often  done  during  the  war, 
with  the  approval  of  the  legislature,  but  now  it 
treated  his  action  as  an  offense  to  its  dignity,  and 
resented  it  by  repealing  its  former  consent  to  the 


THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT        175 

five-per-cent  impost.  The  circular  letter  of  June  8, 
1783,  which  Washington  addressed  to  the  governors 
of  all  the  States  urging  compliance  with  the  demand 
of  Congress  for  the  power  to  levy  taxes,  wholly 
failed  to  move  the  States,  and  from  a  letter  of  Ran 
dolph  to  Madison  it  appears  that  there  was  a  general 
murmur  "against  what  is  called  the  unsolicited  ob 
trusion  of  his  advice." 

In  fact,  distrust  of  the  Continental  Congress  never 
could  be  overcome,  although  that  body  did  what  it 
could  to  remove  opposition  by  promises  of  amend 
ment  and  by  reducing  its  demands.  In  its  efforts 
to  conciliate  the  States,  Congress  agreed  to  become 
a  migratory  body.  There  wras  jealousy  over  the 
sectional  advantage  which  it  was  held  that  Pennsyl 
vania  derived  from  the  meeting  of  Congress  in  Phil 
adelphia.  In  1783,  after  Congress  had  left  Phila 
delphia  for  Princeton,  there  were  numerous  debates 
on  the  subject  of  a  federal  city,  and  it  was  resolved 
that  there  should  be  two  national  capitals,  one  on 
the  Delaware  and  the  other  on  the  Potomac,  to  be 
used  alternately  by  Congress;  but  until  suitable 
buildings  should  be  erected  Congress  should  sit  in 
Trenton  and  at  Annapolis  by  turns.  But  nothing 
that  Congress  could  do  could  persuade  the  States 
to  provide  Congress  with  sources  of  revenue  under 
its  own  administration.  All  that  years  of  coaxing 
and  pleading  could  effect  was  the  cession  of  all  the 
western  lands  to  the  United  States,  which  from  the 


176  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

State  point  of  view  was  a  handsome  provision  of 
assets  with  which  in  time  Congress  should  be  able 
to  meet  its  liabilities. 

Meanwhile  the  national  government  was  bank 
rupt  and  its  prospects  seemed  hopeless.  For  a  long 
time  everything  indicated  that  the  Confederation 
would  run  the  usual  career  of  dissolution,  such  as 
had  been  followed  by  every  Confederation  known 
to  history  up  to  that  time,  and  that  was  the  general 
expectation  among  thoughtful  observers.  Those 
who  labored  to  keep  the  States  together  sustained 
their  hopes  by  the  belief  that  the  people  would  learn 
by  experience  the  need  of  a  general  government,  and 
meanwhile  they  used  every  possible  means  to  direct 
the  course  of  events.  Their  efforts  were  powerfully 
aided  by  increasing  evidence  of  the  weakness  and 
incompetence  of  State  authority.  Distrust  of  the 
Continental  Congress  was  now  associated  with  dis 
trust  of  the  State  legislatures,  and  the  effect  was  to 
produce  a  desire  for  authority  superior  to  both. 
Thoughts  turning  in  that  direction  rested  comforta 
bly  upon  the  stanch  figure  of  George  Washington, 
in  whose  prudence  and  integrity  there  was  universal 
confidence. 

Conditions  did  not  become  ripe  for  action  until 
1786,  when,  in  addition  to  their  other  troubles,  the 
States  were  in  a  snarl  about  commercial  regulations. 
Such  important  waters  as  Long  Island  Sound,  New 
York  Bay,  the  Delaware,  the  Chesapeake,  were  not 


THE   NATIONAL  MOVEMENT        177 

any  of  them  under  the  jurisdiction  of  a  single  State, 
and  regulations  adopted  by  one  State  were  affected 
by  the  action  of  neighboring  States.  The  whole 
subject  of  interstate  relations  received  a  large  addi 
tion  of  interest  when  schemes  of  internal  navigation 
became  a  general  topic  of  discussion.  No  subject 
was  more  popular,  as  it  contained  many  elements 
appealing  to  the  imagination — business  opportunity, 
means  of  transportation,  commercial  expansion,  de 
velopment  of  natural  resources,  the  advance  of 
America  in  wealth  and  population.  Joel  Barlow,  the 
Connecticut  poet,  whose  masterpiece,  the  Vision  of 
Columbus,  made  its  appearance  in  March,  1787,  told 
in  it  how 

"Canals,  long- winding,  ope  a  watery  flight, 
And  distant  streams  and  seas  and  lakes  unite. 
From  fair  Albania,  toward  the  setting  sun, 
Back  through  the  midland,  lengthening  channels  run, 
Meet  the  fair  lakes,  their  beauteous  towns  that  lave, 
And  Hudson  join  to  broad  Ohio's  wave." 

This  poetic  vision  was  eventually  realized  by  the 
construction  of  the  Erie  Canal.  A  project  of  like 
character  gave  the  nationally  minded  statesmen  the 
leverage  they  needed  to  lift  their  scheme  into  the 
field  of  practical  politics.  In  1784,  upon  Washing 
ton's  recommendation,  Virginia  became  interested  in 
plans  for  a  waterway  between  the  Chesapeake  and 
the  West.  This  matter  gave  added  importance  to 


178  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

pending  commercial  negotiations  between  Maryland 
and  Virginia.  Commissioners  from  both  States 
were  appointed  to  meet  in  Alexandria;  in  March, 
1785.  Washington  invited  them  to  Mount  Vernon, 
and  there  they  reached  an  agreement  for  joint  action 
by  the  two  States.  The  discussion  which  ensued 
brought  out  so  clearly  the  need  of  general  action 
that  in  January,  1786,  the  Virginia  Legislature  ap 
pointed  commissioners  "to  meet  such  as  might  be 
appointed  by  the  other  States  of  the  Union"  to  con 
sider  the  whole  subject  of  commercial  regulations. 
These  commercial  negotiations  gave  Hamilton  the 
handle  for  which  he  had  been  waiting.  By  1785  the 
excesses  of  the  dominant  faction  in  New  York  had 
provoked  such  a  strong  reaction  that  in  the  elections 
that  year  many  changes  took  place  in  the  composi 
tion  of  the  legislature.  Of  the  nine  members  of  the 
delegation  from  New  York  City,  seven  failed  of  re 
election,  among  them  Aaron  Burr.  The  new  mem 
bers  included  some  of  Hamilton's  closest  friends. 
One  of  them,  Robert  Troup,  has  related  that  "  Ham 
ilton  had  no  idea  that  the  legislature  could  be  pre 
vailed  on  to  adopt  the  system  as  recommended  by 
Congress,  neither  had  he  any  partiality  for  a  com 
mercial  convention,  otherwise  than  as  a  stepping- 
stone  to  a  general  convention,  to  form  a  general  con 
stitution.  In  pursuance  of  his  plan,  the  late  Mr. 
Duer,  the  late  Colonel  Malcolm,  and  myself,  were 
sent  to  the  state  legislature  as  part  of  the  city  dele- 


THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT        179 

gation,  and  we  were  to  make  every  possible  effort  to 
accomplish  Hamilton's  objects." 

The  mercantile  interests  of  New  York  were  deeply 
aggrieved  by  the  impotence  of  national  authority. 
The  expanding  commerce  of  the  nation  was  without 
any  sort  of  public  guardianship.  On  May  19,  1785, 
the  ship  Empress,  the  first  American  vessel  to  visit 
China,  returned  to  the  port  of  New  York,  the  event 
arousing  great  enthusiasm.  But  in  that  same  year 
came  doleful  accounts  of  the  way  Algerine  corsairs 
preyed  upon  American  commerce,  capturing  vessels 
and  enslaving  the  crews.  Mercantile  advocacy  of 
some  regular  provision  for  the  support  of  the  national 
government  became  so  urgent  that  the  dominant 
faction  was  impressed  with  the  need  of  conciliatory 
measures.  Although  the  congressional  scheme  was 
rejected,  there  was  great  profession  of  willingness  to 
allow  federal  taxation  under  State  control,  and  it 
was  decided  to  make  a  favorable  response  to  the 
Virginia  call  for  a  commercial  convention.  As  such 
a  convention  had  no  power  to  bind,  and  whatsoever 
recommendations  it  might  make  could  have  no  legal 
effect  save  such  as  the  State  legislature  might  choose 
to  allow,  the  matter  did  not  seem  to  be  of  sufficient 
importance  to  become  a  bone  of  contention,  and 
hence  Hamilton's  friends  were  able  to  have  his  name 
included  in  the  list  of  delegates,  six  in  number. 

The  convention  met  in  Annapolis,  in  September, 
1786.  Of  the  New  York  delegates  only  two  at- 


180  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

tended,  Hamilton  and  the  attorney-general,  Egbert 
Benson.  Only  five  States  were  represented,  and  the 
affair  looked  like  a  failure,  but  it  was  known  that  in 
the  case  of  some  States  absence  did  not  imply  want 
of  sympathy  with  the  announced  purpose  of  the 
convention.  Although  the  convention  met  in  the 
Maryland  capital,  Maryland  was  not  represented 
through  fear  that  the  effect  might  be  to  weaken  the 
powers  of  Congress.  South  Carolina  sent  no  dele 
gates,  but  she  had  already  defined  her  position  on 
the  question  by  instructing  her  delegates  in  Congress 
to  vote  for  the  national  regulation  of  commerce  for 
fifteen  years.  New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island,  and 
Massachusetts  appointed  delegates  but  they  did  not 
attend.  Hamilton  saw  in  the  situation  the  means 
of  impressing  the  public  mind  with  the  impossibility 
of  a  commercial  settlement  without  a  political  set 
tlement.  He  framed  an  address,  which  was  unani 
mously  adopted  by  the  convention,  recommending 
the  appointment  of  commissioners  to  a  convention 
to  meet  in  Philadelphia  in  May,  1787,  "to  take  into 
consideration  the  situation  of  the  United  States,  to 
devise  such  further  provisions  as  shall  appear  to  them 
necessary  to  render  the  Constitution  of  the  Federal 
Government  adequate  to  the  exigencies  of  the  Union, 
and  to  report  such  an  act  for  that  purpose  to 
the  United  States  in  Congress  assembled  as,  when 
agreed  to  by  them  and  afterwards  confirmed  by  the 
Legislature  of  every  State,  will  effectually  provide 
for  the  same." 


THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT         181 

Of  all  the  various  pleas  that  Hamilton  made  for 
the  meeting  of  a  constitutional  convention,  the 
Annapolis  address  is  vaguest  in  its  terms.  Accord 
ing  to  Madison,  this  was  due  to  the  insistence  of 
Randolph,  of  Virginia,  to  whose  advice  Hamilton 
deferred,  since  Virginia's  active  support  of  the  move 
ment  was  all-important.  Otto,  the  French  minis 
ter,  in  a  dispatch  to  his  government,  gave  an  exact 
account  of  what  was  done.  He  remarked:  "By  pro 
posing  a  new  organization  of  the  general  govern 
ment,  all  minds  would  have  been  revolted;  circum 
stances  ruinous  to  the  commerce  of  America  have 
happily  arisen  to  furnish  the  reformers  with  a  pre 
text  for  introducing  innovations." 

On  returning  from  Annapolis  Hamilton  went 
energetically  to  work  to  bring  New  York  into  line 
with  the  movement.  On  the  face  of  it,  the  situation 
looked  hopeless.  Governor  Clinton,  a  man  of  the 
Ulster  breed,  who  possessed  to  the  fullest  extent  the 
inflexible  character  which  goes  with  that  breed,  was 
opposed  to  anything  that  would  abate  State  suprem 
acy,  and  he  was  now  assured  of  that  solid  support 
to  his  position  which  is  supplied  by  large  vested  in 
terests  identified  with  it.  The  State  had  created  a 
tariff  system  of  its  own:  custom-houses  had  been 
established;  collectors,  surveyors,  gaugers,  weighers, 
and  tide  waiters  had  been  appointed.  Thus  there 
was  a  phalanx  of  active  politicians  committed  by 
their  class  interest  against  any  transfer  of  commer 
cial  control  to  the  Federal  Government  and,  as  usual 


182  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

when  a  class  interest  is  imperilled,  they  invoked  the 
spirit  of  liberty  with  ardent  zeal.  An  argument 
energetically  pressed  in  the  pamphlet  controversies 
of  the  period  was  that  republicanism  had  never 
flourished  except  in  small  states,  and  the  creation  of 
"a  mighty  Continental  legislature"  would  be  the 
doom  of  American  liberty.  A  writer  who  signed 
himself  "Sydney"  made  rather  a  plausible  argument 
from  English  history,  to  the  effect  that  a  despotic 
oligarchy  would  be  erected  if  Congress  were  allowed 
to  levy  taxes  through  its  own  agents. 

Hamilton  threw  himself  into  the  fray,  and  in  the 
election  of  1786  he  came  forward  personally  as  a 
candidate  for  the  legislature.  His  ticket  won  at 
the  polls  in  New  York  City  through  the  warm  sup 
port  of  the  business  community,  but  up-State  senti 
ment  was  still  strongly  antifederal,  and  Governor 
Clinton  was  supported  by  a  compact  majority  in 
both  branches  of  the  legislature.  Hamilton  had 
but  a  small  following  on  any  test  of  party  strength, 
but  he  was  able  to  accomplish  his  main  purpose, 
that  of  engaging  the  State  in  the  national  movement. 
He  was  able  to  do  this  by  sheer  dexterity  of  manage 
ment,  in  which  he  displayed  that  fine  statesman 
ship  which  extracts  success  from  untoward  circum 
stances. 

To  view  the  developments  in  their  right  relation 
it  is  important  to  bear  in  mind  that  Hamilton  did 
not  approve  the  scheme  which  Congress  was  urging. 


THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT         183 

While  a  member  of  Congress  Hamilton  had  opposed 
that  scheme  and  voted  against  it,  standing  out  in 
opposition  to  his  own  colleagues  from  New  York. 
In  a  letter  to  Governor  Clinton  at  the  time  he  jus 
tified  his  action  on  the  ground  that  he  could  never 
consent  to  "attempts  which  must  either  fail  in  the 
execution  or  be  productive  of  evil/7  and  that  he 
"would  rather  incur  the  negative  inconveniences  of 
delay  than  the  positive  mischiefs  of  injudicious  ex 
pedients."  This  scheme  was  adopted  by  Congress, 
April  18,  1783,  with  the  idea  of  wheedling  the  States 
into  providing  it  with  a  definite  source  of  revenue. 
By  it  the  five-per-cent  impost  previously  urged  was 
abandoned,  and  instead  of  it  there  was  proposed  a 
schedule  of  specific  duties  on  spirits,  tea,  coffee, 
sugar,  and  molasses,  not  to  be  continued  longer  than 
twenty-five  years,  the  proceeds  to  be  applied  to  no 
other  purpose  than  the  discharge  of  the  interest  or 
principal  of  the  debts  contracted  on  the  faith  of  the 
United  States  for  supporting  the  war,  the  collectors 
to  be  appointed  by  the  States  within  which  their 
duties  were  to  be  exercised,  but  "amenable  to  and 
removable  by"  Congress;  and  Congress  was  to  ren 
der  an  annual  account  to  the  States  of  the  proceeds 
of  each  of  the  specified  articles.  In  Hamilton's  judg 
ment  this  scheme  fell  immensely  short  of  what  the 
situation  demanded,  but  it  was  the  only  national 
proposal  then  pending,  and  so  he  pressed  it  upon 
the  attention  of  the  legislature.  It  is,  however, 


184  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

clear  from  what  is  now  known  of  all  the  circumstances 
that  what  this  really  meant  was  simply  a  turn  of  the 
screw. 

In  addition  to  handling  an  adverse  State  legisla 
ture,  Hamilton  had  also  to  handle  an  adverse  Con 
gress.  After  leaving  Philadelphia  in  1783  Congress 
had  held  a  session  at  Princeton,  one  at  Annapolis, 
and  one  at  Trenton;  but,  tiring  of  a  migratory  life, 
it  settled  down  in  New  York  City  in  1785,  and  that 
continued  to  be  the  place  of  meeting  until  after  the 
adoption  of  the  new  Constitution.  In  1786  Congress 
issued  a  statement  declaring  that  it  could  not  recom 
mend  any  other  scheme  than  the  one  proposed  in 
1783,  and  regretting  that  Maryland,  Georgia,  Rhode 
Island,  and  New  York  still  refused  to  assent  to  a 
system  "so  long  since  and  so  repeatedly  presented 
for  their  adoption. "  The  attitude  of  New  York 
was  regarded  by  Congress  as  the  decisive  factor, 
and  by  sitting  in  New  York  City  the  members  hoped 
to  influence  the  action  of  the  State  legislature  which 
also  met  there.  In  1786  the  legislature  yielded  suffi 
ciently  to  pass  an  act  giving  Congress  the  proceeds 
of  the  duties  but  reserving  to  the  State  "the  sole 
power  of  levying  and  collecting"  them.  This  was  a 
great  disappointment  to  Congress,  as  meanwhile 
other  States  had  concurred  and  it  now  seemed  that 
only  New  York  stood  in  the  way  of  the  success  of 
the  plan.  Congress  therefore  adopted  resolutions 
declaring  that  the  New  York  enactment  was  not  a 


THE  NATIONAL  MOVEMENT         185 

compliance  with  the  plan  proposed  by  Congress  and 
urging  Governor  Clinton  to  reconvene  the  legislature 
to  consider  the  subject  again;  but  Clinton  was  im 
movable. 

When  news  came  of  the  action  of  the  Annapolis 
convention  Congress  was  much  disturbed  by  it,  re 
garding  it  as  still  another  hindrance  to  the  adoption 
of  the  pending  scheme.  The  call  for  a  convention  to 
revise  the  Articles  of  Confederation  was  denounced 
as  illegal,  that  being  the  proper  function  of  Congress. 
This  view  was  adopted  by  leading  men  in  a  number 
of  States.  There  was  no  prospect  of  inducing  Con 
gress  to  concur  in  the  call  for  the  Philadelphia  con 
vention  until  the  members  were  convinced  that  there 
was  no  hope  that  the  New  York  Legislature  could 
be  persuaded  to  accept  their  financial  scheme. 

The  skill  with  which  Hamilton  managed  the  di 
verse  elements  of  this  complicated  situation  so  as 
to  produce  the  result  he  desired  finely  displays  his 
political  genius.  The  particulars  deserve  full  con 
sideration,  the  more  so  since  a  confused  account  of 
what  occurred  has  passed  into  history.  While  other 
periods  in  his  career  were  more  brilliant,  at  no  time 
was  there  such  a  rich  and  varied  exhibition  of  his 
statesmanship  as  in  this  wonderful  year  of  1787. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR 

THE  session  of  1787  of  the  New  York  Legislature 
lasted  from  January  12  to  April  21.  During  most 
of  this  period  Congress  was  in  session  almost  along 
side.  Members  could  therefore  inform  themselves 
directly  of  what  was  going  on  in  State  politics,  and 
many  of  them  were  listeners  to  Hamilton's  speeches. 
At  that  time  colonial  practice  was  still  retained  by 
the  legislature.  Its  proceedings  began  with  a  speech 
from  the  governor  to  which  an  answer  was  voted  by 
each  house.  This  arrangement  allowed  any  ques 
tion  to  be  made  an  issue  forthwith  if  such  was  the 
desire. 

Hamilton  was  appointed  a  member  of  the  com 
mittee  to  prepare  the  answer  of  the  Assembly,  and 
he  reported  a  draft  which  simply  declared  that  "the 
several  important  matters  mentioned  in  your  Excel 
lency's  speech,  and  communicated  in  the  papers  that 
accompany  it,  shall,  in  the  course  of  the  session, 
engage  our  serious  attention."  The  Speaker,  Rich 
ard  Varick,  moved  an  amendment  expressing  "ap 
probation  of  your  Excellency's  conduct  in  not  con 
vening  the  legislature  at  an  earlier  period."  This 
brought  on  an  animated  debate,  in  which  feelings 

186 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  187 

excited  by  the  struggle  over  the  federal  impost  re 
ceived  strong  expression.  Varick  offered  to  with 
draw  his  motion,  but  objection  was  made.  All  this 
took  place  in  committee  of  the  whole,  and  it  was 
finally  decided  that  the  committee  should  rise  and 
report.  During  this  stage  of  the  controversy  Ham 
ilton  kept  out  of  it,  remarking  that  "he  would  reserve 
himself  on  this  subject  until  it  came  again  before 
them,  when  he  hoped  to  be  enabled  to  offer  such 
arguments  as  would  strike  with  conviction  the  can 
did  part  of  the  House."  The  matter  then  went  over 
until  January  19,  when  General  Malcolm  moved 
a  further  amendment  noting  the  fact  that  the  fed 
eral-revenue  act,  passed  at  the  last  session,  had  not 
been  considered  by  Congress  "as  a  compliance  with 
their  act  of  April,  1783,"  and  declaring  that  "al 
though  our  inclination,  as  well  as  the  persuasion  that 
it  is  the  sentiment  of  our  constituents,  will  dispose 
us  on  all  occasions  to  manifest  the  most  respectful 
attention  to  the  recommendations"  of  Congress,  yet, 
in  view  of  the  expense  and  inconvenience  which  an 
extra  session  would  have  imposed,  "we  are  of  opinion 
that  your  Excellency  was  justifiable  in  forbearing  to 
convene  the  legislature  until  the  time  appointed  by 
law." 

It  would  be  a  mistake  to  think  that  these  amend 
ments  were  offered  in  a  spirit  of  hostility  to  Hamil 
ton.  Both  Varick  and  Malcolm  were  members  of 
the  city  delegation  and  were  among  Hamilton's  per- 


188  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

sonal  friends.  Both  were  men  of  independent  char 
acter  and  individual  judgment,  who  formed  and 
acted  upon  their  own  views.  Varick  had  been 
General  Schuyler's  military  secretary  early  in  the 
war;  eventually  becoming  recording  secretary  to 
General  Washington.  He  was  Mayor  Duane's  judi 
cial  colleague  in  the  city  court,  when  that  tribunal 
adopted  Hamilton's  views  of  the  supremacy  of  a 
national  treaty  over  State  law.  In  1786  he  was  ap 
pointed  with  Samuel  Jones  to  revise  the  State  laws, 
which  work  has  preserved  his  memory  in  the  legal 
profession,  while  in  general  civic  life  he  is  remem 
bered  as  a  founder  and  president  of  the  American 
Bible  Society.  Malcolm  entered  the  war  as  colonel 
of  a  local  regiment  of  infantry  at  the  same  time 
Hamilton  entered  as  artillery  captain.  The  rela 
tions  of  Hamilton  with  both  were  so  intimate  that 
it  is  scarcely  possible  that  he  did  not  know  just 
what  they  intended  to  do. 

Not  until  after  Malcolm's  amendment  was  offered 
did  Hamilton  take  part  in  the  debate.  He  began 
by  remarking: 

I  have  seen  with  regret  the  progress  of  this  business, 
and  it  was  my  earnest  wish  to  have  avoided  this  present 
discussion.  I  saw  with  regret  the  first  application  of 
Congress  to  the  governor,  because  it  was  easy  to  see  that 
it  involved  a  delicate  dilemma:  Either  the  governor,  from 
consideration  of  inconvenience,  might  refuse  to  call  the 
Assembly,  which  would  derogate  from  the  respect  due  to 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  189 

Congress;  or  he  might  call  them,  and  by  being  brought 
together  at  an  unreasonable  period  before  the  time -ap 
pointed  by  law  for  the  purpose,  they  would  meet  with 
reluctance.  .  .  . 

Hence  it  was  that  he  had  thought  wise  to  omit 
any  mention  of  the  subject  in  the  reply  of  the  House 
to  the  governor's  speech.  "I  thought/7  he  said, 
"we  might  safely  be  silent  without  any  implication 
of  censure  on  the  governor.  It  was  neither  in  my 
mind  to  condemn  nor  approve.  I  was  only  desirous 
of  avoiding  an  interference  in  a  constitutional  ques 
tion,  which  belonged  entirely  to  the  province  of  the 
executive  authority  of  the  State,  and  about  which  I 
knew  there  would  be  a  difference  of  opinion,  even 
in  this  house.  I  submit  it  to  the  house,  whether 
this  was  not  a  prudent  course,  and  whether  it  is  not 
to  be  lamented  that  the  proposed  amendment  forces 
the  discussion  upon  us.  Constitutional  questions 
are  always  delicate;  they  should  never  be  touched 
but  from  necessity. " 

But  since,  in  spite  of  his  efforts,  the  matter  had 
been  brought  forward  and  the  House  committed  to 
an  examination  of  the  subject,  it  should  be  viewed 
in  its  full  extent.  He  proceeded  to  depict  in  grave 
and  impartial  language  the  miseries  of  the  situation 
and  the  impossibility  of  satisfactory  action  of  any 
kind  in  such  circumstances.  On  the  pending  ques 
tion  he  was,  of  course,  defeated.  Matters  had  gone 
so  far  that  the  Clinton  men  insisted  upon  distinct 


190  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

approbation  of  the  governor's  decision.  Malcolm's 
amendment  was  voted  down,  although  Varick  voted 
for  it.  Malcolm  in  his  turn  voted  for  Varick's 
amendment,  which  was  carried  by  a  vote  of  36  to  9. 
Hamilton  voted  against  both  amendments,  but  he 
had  made  it  clear  that  he  did  so  in  no  spirit  of  antag 
onism,  but  for  reasons  which  deeply  impressed  the 
House  and  influenced  its  subsequent  action. 

Although  the  Clinton  men  carried  their  point, 
that  made  them  the  more  desirous  that  their  action 
should  not  be  taken  to  mean  that  they  acted  in  any 
spirit  of  opposition  to  the  Continental  Congress  or 
to  federal  authority.  As  to  that,  they  were  entirely 
sincere.  Popular  history  has  not  done  justice  to 
Governor  Clinton's  motives.  On  October  14, 1783, 
he  wrote  to  Washington:  "I  am  fully  persuaded, 
unless  the  powers  of  the  National  Council  are  en 
larged,  and  that  body  better  supported  than  it  is  at 
present,  all  their  measures  will  discover  such  feeble 
ness  and  want  of  energy,  as  will  stain  us  with  dis 
grace,  and  expose  us  to  the  worst  of  evils/'  If  his 
subsequent  behavior  now  seems  to  have  been  incon 
sistent  with  such  professions,  it  never  wore  that 
appearance  to  him,  for  he  steadily  exerted  his  influ 
ence  in  favor  of  State  support  to  the  authority  of 
the  Confederation.  He  was  not  opposed  to  grant 
ing  to  Congress  the  sources  of  revenue  it  demanded. 
The  point  on  which  he  insisted  was  that  the  agency 
should  be  wholly  State  agency;  that  a  foreign  set  of 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  191 

tax-collectors  should  not  be  intruded  within  the 
sphere  of  the  State,  to  impair  its  jurisdiction  within 
its  own  area  and  possibly  to  clash  with  its  author 
ity.  As  he  viewed  the  case,  that  was  the  very  issue 
over  which  the  War  of  Independence  had  been 
fought.  If  the  States  should  now  waive  their  inde 
pendence  in  favor  of  the  Continental  Congress,  why 
should  they  not  have  done  so  in  favor  of  the  British 
Parliament,  whose  demands  were,  in  fact,  small  in 
amount  in  comparison  with  those  now  being  pressed  ? 
Such  views  were  very  generally  held  among  the  elder 
statesmen,  the  men  who  had  been  leaders  of  Ameri 
can  resistance  at  a  time  when  Hamilton  was  a  child. 
Clinton's  attitude  in  New  York  was  no  other  than 
that  of  Samuel  Adams  in  Massachusetts  and  Patrick 
Henry  in  Virginia. 

On  one  point  the  Clinton  men  were  entirely 
correct,  namely,  that  grant  of  authority  to  the  Fed 
eral  Government  to  operate  within  the  States  by  its 
own  agents  would  be  incompatible  with  State  sov 
ereignty.  Hamilton  admitted  this  with  a  frankness 
which  the  Congressional  politicians  regarded  as  in 
judicious.  Their  line  was  to  contend  that  the  grant 
was  so  carefully  limited  that  there  could  be  no  actual 
impairment  of  State  sovereignty.  The  line  of  the 
Clinton  men  was  to  profess  entire  willingness  to 
comply  with  the  wishes  of  Congress,  provided  the 
sovereignty  of  the  State  was  respected.  It  was,  of 
course,  known  both  to  the  members  of  Congress 


192  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

and  to  the  Clinton  men  that  Hamilton  had  been 
opposed  to  the  Congressional  scheme,  but  that  did 
not  prejudice  its  chances  now  because  the  ground  of 
his  opposition  was  that  it  did  not  go  far  enough,  and 
this  would  naturally  suggest  to  the  Clinton  men  the 
expediency  of  acceding  to  the  Congressional  demand 
and  thus  ending  a  troublesome  agitation.  But  their 
leaders  were  too  sincerely  attached  to  the  principle 
of  State  sovereignty  to  yield  on  that  point.  At  the 
same  time  the  Congressmen  could  not  but  feel  that 
Hamilton  had  made  the  strongest  possible  presenta 
tion  of  their  case.  The  most  cogent  argument  they 
could  now  offer  was  that  if  New  York  still  insisted 
upon  its  modification  of  the  Congressional  scheme 
the  concurrence  of  the  other  States  would  go  for 
nothing,  and  the  whole  weary  business  of  getting 
assent  to  the  plan  would  have  to  begin  over  again. 
Hamilton  pressed  that  consideration  with  great 
force.  "The  immediate  consequences  of  accepting 
our  grant/7  he  told  the  Assembly,  "  would  be  a  relin- 
quishment  of  the  grants  of  other  States.  They  must 
take  up  the  matter  anew,  and  do  the  work  over 
again  to  accommodate  it  to  our  standard.  In  order 
to  anchor  our  State,  would  it  have  been  wise  to  set 
twelve,  or  at  least  eleven,  others  afloat  ?" 

Incidentally  he  portrayed  with  great  power  the 
miserable  situation  into  which  the  country  was 
drifting.  All  factions  felt  that  anxiety,  however 
obstinate  their  attachment  to  their  particular  prin- 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  193 

ciples.  No  attempt  was  made  to  reply  to  Hamil 
ton's  argument,  but  acceptance  of  the  Congressional 
plan  of  impost  was  defeated  by  a  vote  of  36  to  21. 
The  decision  was  rendered  in  such  silence  that 
among  the  New  York  Federalists  it  became  a  say 
ing  that  "the  impost  was  strangled  by  a  band  of 
mutes."  The  silence  was  a  recognition  of  the  ex 
treme  seriousness  of  the  situation,  and  that  was  just 
what  Hamilton  aimed  to  produce.  The  effect  was 
to  convince  the  members  of  Congress  that  every 
thing  had  been  done  that  could  be  done 'to  get  New 
York  to  accept  their  plan,  and  they  were  now  quite 
ready  to  favor  the  movement  for  a  federal  conven 
tion.  At  the  same  time  the  Clinton  men  were  now 
keen  to  show  that  in  doing  what  they  had  done  they 
meant  no  disrespect  to  the  Continental  Congress, 
and  were  ready  to  make  concessions  so  long  as  the 
principle  of  State  sovereignty  was  not  violated. 

Hamilton  promptly  availed  himself  of  this  favor 
able  situation,  and  now  events  moved  rapidly.  The 
impost  was  defeated  on  February  15.  On  the  17th 
Hamilton  offered  a  resolution  instructing  the  New 
York  delegates  to  move  in  Congress  for  its  recom 
mendation  to  the  States  to  send  representatives  to 
a  convention  to  revise  the  Articles  of  Confederation. 
The  resolution  was  promptly  adopted  by  the  Assem 
bly,  but  action  was  delayed  in  the  Senate  for  one 
day,  and  concurrence  was  then  barely  obtained, 
there  being  a  majority  of  just  one  vote.  On  the 


194  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

21st  the  matter  was  taken  up  in  Congress,  and  a 
resolution  was  adopted  recommending  the  States  to 
send  delegates  to  the  Philadelphia  convention,  but 
while  adopting  the  suggestions  of  the  Annapolis 
address  as  to  place  and  time  the  purpose  was  some 
what  differently  stated.  According  to  the  Annapo 
lis  address,  drafted  by  Hamilton,  the  purpose  was 
"to  render  the  constitution  of  the  Federal  Govern 
ment  adequate  to  the  exigencies  of  the  Union."  Ac 
cording  to  the  Congressional  resolution,  it  was  "for 
the  sole  and  express  purpose  of  revising  the  Articles 
of  Confederation."  On  the  26th,  on  Hamilton's 
motion,  the  New  York  Assembly  adopted  a  resolu 
tion  for  the  appointment  of  five  delegates  to  the 
Philadelphia  convention;  but  the  Senate  reduced  the 
number  to  three,  and  in  joint  convention  Yates, 
Hamilton,  and  Lansing  were  elected  by  ballot. 
Both  from  his  personal  eminence  and  from  the  fact 
that  he  was  the  mover  of  the  resolution,  Hamilton 
could  not  have  been  omitted  from  the  list  of  dele 
gates,  but  care  was  taken  to  hobble  him  by  giving 
him  two  rigid  State-sovereignty  men  as  his  col 
leagues.  The  arrangement  was  so  disagreeable  to 
Hamilton  that  toward  the  end  of  the  session  he 
made  an  attempt  to  have  two  additional  commis 
sioners  chosen,  so  as  to  make  the  number  five,  as  he 
had  originally  planned,  but  on  that  point  he  was 
defeated.  Nevertheless,  he  had  attained  his  main 
object,  through  his  ability  to  use  as  his  instruments 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  195 

a  hostile  State  legislature  and  a  reluctant  Congress. 
Up  to  that  time  the  success  of  the  movement  for  a 
convention  had  been  very  doubtful.  The  example 
and  influence  of  Virginia  had  in  a  short  time  caused 
the  appointment  of  delegates  by  five  other  States; 
but  then  the  movement  seemed  to  be  exhausted. 
It  was  the  adhesion  of  New  York  and  the  sanction 
of  Congress  that  made  the  business  go.  All  the 
remaining  States  now  sent  delegates,  except  Rhode 
Island;  but  that  did  not  matter  much,  as  its  reputa 
tion  was  then  such  that  it  was  nicknamed  "Rogues' 
Island." 

In  addition  to  his  successful  pilotage  of  the  con 
vention  movement,  Hamilton  accomplished  much 
important  legislation  during  this  memorable  session. 
The  prescriptive  legislation  he  had  assailed  in  his 
Phocion  letters  was  now  wiped  off  the  statute  books. 
In  urging  the  repeal  of  all  acts  inconsistent  with  the 
treaty  of  peace,  he  reiterated  his  old  contention  that 
the  judges  were  bound  to  apply  the  treaty,  no  mat 
ter  what  State  law  might  direct.  He  said:  "Their 
powers  will  be  the  same,  whether  this  law  was  passed 
or  not,"  but  he  held  that  "it  would  be  impolitic  to 
leave  them  to  the  dilemma,  either  of  infringing  the 
treaty  to  enforce  the  particular  laws  of  the  State, 
or  to  explain  away  the  laws  of  the  State  to  give 
effect  to  the  treaty."  This  was  strong  doctrine  to 
address  to  an  assembly  devoted  to  State  sovereignty. 
And  so  also,  in  another  important  matter,  he  took 


196  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

a  line  so  apt  to  irritate  State  pride  that  no  politician 
would  have  ventured  upon  it  who  determined  his 
principles  by  their  popularity.  Hamilton  advocated 
recognition  of  the  State  of  Vermont,  although  it 
had  been  formed  in  territory  claimed  by  New  York. 
The  speech  in  which  he  presented  his  views  is  a  fine 
exhibition  of  the  breadth  of  Hamilton's  statesman 
ship.  The  matter  had  been  previously  discussed  in 
the  spirit  of  a  conveyancer,  with  reference  to  ancient 
grants  and  titles.  Discarding  such  considerations, 
Hamilton  took  up  the  fundamental  objects  of  gov 
ernment,  and  from  these  he  drew  cogent  reasons 
against  any  attempt  to  coerce  the  people  of  Ver 
mont.  The  entire  frankness  with  which  Hamilton 
declared  his  principles,  at  any  stage  of  the  tide  of 
popular  sentiment,  is  very  striking.  Anything  like 
dissimulation  was  foreign  to  his  nature  throughout 
his  entire  career  up  to  its  closing  years,  when  there 
was  a  decline  that  will  be  noted  in  its  place.  All 
his  achievements  were  due  to  his  intellectual  power, 
without  aid  from  any  of  the  arts  of  cajolery. 

It  has  been  remarked  that  Hamilton  did  not  take 
as  prominent  a  part  in  the  Philadelphia  convention 
as  might  have  been  expected,  and  it  is  certainly  the 
case  that  he  did  not  figure  among  its  leaders,  to  the 
extent  that  might  have  been  expected  from  his  pre 
vious  activity.  In  Jefferson's  papers  is  preserved  a 
record  of  some  table-talk  in  which  George  Mason,  a 
Virginia  delegate,  related  that  "Yates  and  Lansing 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  197 

never  voted  in  a  single  instance  with  Hamilton, 
who  was  so  much  mortified  at  it  that  he  went  home." 
The  notion  that  Hamilton  was  snuffed  out  by  Yates 
and  Lansing  shows  that  Mason  did  not  understand 
the  situation.  Nothing  could  daunt  Hamilton,  and 
he  could  not  have  been  surprised  or  mortified  that 
Yates  and  Lansing  opposed  him;  that  is  just  what 
they  had  been  put  there  to  do.  It  would  be  absurd 
to  think  that  such  a  familiar  situation  had  bereft 
Hamilton  of  the  activity,  shrewdness,  dexterity,  and 
practical  power  of  which  he  had  just  before  made 
such  a  signal  display. 

The  true  explanation  of  Hamilton's  periods  of  ab 
sence  from  the  convention  is  very  simple — he  had  to 
make  his  living.  He  was  not  situated  like  the  plan 
tation  statesmen,  whose  business  affairs  could  be 
looked  after  by  their  overseers  while  they  were 
away;  his  income  depended  upon  his  personal  efforts. 
At  the  time  the  convention  met  he  had  three  chil 
dren,  the  youngest  just  a  year  old;  another  child 
was  born  the  following  spring.  To  provide  for  this 
growing  family  he  had  no  resource  save  his  profes 
sional  practice.  Hamilton  was  always  disposed  to 
go  to  greater  lengths  of  personal  sacrifice  in  the 
public  service  than  his  family  and  his  friends  ap 
proved;  but  the  public  motive  could  not  operate 
strongly  in  the  case  of  the  convention,  for  it  soon 
appeared  that  where  his  efforts  were  most  needed 
was  in  his  own  State  and  not  in  the  convention.  As 


198  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

soon  as  it  became  plain  that  the  convention  intended 
to  discard  the  Articles  of  Confederation,  Lansing 
and  Yates  withdrew.  The  differences  which  broke 
out  in  the  convention  related  chiefly  to  the  demands 
of  the  small  States,  which  feared  that  in  a  national 
system  the  large  States  would  override  them  unless 
they  were  allowed  special  security.  The  adjustment 
of  this  matter  was  the  main  problem  the  convention 
had  to  solve,  and  in  this  New  York  had  no  interest 
apart  from  Virginia  and  Massachusetts,  which  in 
the  convention,  as  in  the  Continental  Congress, 
were  in  the  habit  of  working  together.  The  legend 
that  has  grown  up,  to  the  effect  that  radical  differ 
ences  existed  as  to  principles,  is  a  throw-back  from 
a  later  period,  when  party  divisions  had  taken  place 
in  the  conduct  of  the  government.  In  1787  the 
model  all  had  in  mind  was  the  English  constitutional 
system.  Nobody  then  thought  that  there  was  any 
important  difference  between  Madison  and  Hamilton 
in  their  political  principles.  They  were  then  work 
ing  in  close  accord.  Hamilton  felt  at  liberty  to  be 
occasional  in  his  attendance,  although  he  went  as 
often  as  his  professional  engagements  would  allow. 
He  took  part  in  organizing  the  convention,  May  27, 
and  remained  until  June  29.  He  appears  to  have 
been  again  in  Philadelphia  on  July  13,  and  he  took 
part  in  convention  proceedings  on  August  13  and 
for  some  days  later,  leaving  in  time  to  reach  New 
York  on  August  20.  He  reappeared  in  the  conven- 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  199 

tion  on  September  6,  and  stayed  on  to  the  final  ses 
sion,  which  took  place  on  the  17th. 

Meanwhile  there  was  much  in  the  New  York  sit 
uation  to  require  his  attention.  Lansing  and  Yates 
withdrew  from  the  convention  on  July  5,  justifying 
their  action  in  a  letter  to  Governor  Clinton,  which 
was  in  effect  a  campaign  document  on  the  State- 
sovereignty  side.  On  the  21st  Hamilton  made  a 
brief  reply  in  a  New  York  newspaper,  in  which  he 
criticised  Clinton's  antagonism  to  the  convention, 
writing  on  the  assumption  that  Clinton  had  inspired 
the  withdrawal  of  Lansing  and  Yates.  Hamilton 
was  at  once  accused  of  having  made  a  wanton  attack 
upon  the  governor  of  the  State.  He  made  a  sharp 
reply,  asserting  his  right  to  unmask  "the  pernicious 
intrigue  of  a  man  high  in  office  to  preserve  power 
and  emolument  to  himself,  at  the  expense  of  the 
Union,  the  peace  and  the  happiness  of  America." 
As  for  the  grounds  on  which  he  criticised  the  gov 
ernor's  course,  he  declared  his  readiness  "to  bring 
forward  to  public  view  the  sources  of  his  informa 
tion,  and  the  proofs  of  his  charge,"  should  the  gov 
ernor  deny  having  "made  use  of  the  expressions 
imputed  to  him." 

Clinton  apparently  took  the  position  that  it  was 
beneath  his  dignity  to  notice  this  challenge.  But 
an  association  of  Federal  Republicans  was  formed, 
with  General  John  Lamb  at  its  head,  to  defend  the 
principle  of  State  sovereignty.  The  opposition  to 


200  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

the  new  Constitution  was  so  well  prepared  for  action 
that  on  the  very  day,  September  24,  that  a  copy 
reached  New  York  for  publication,  a  letter  attacking 
the  proposed  system  of  government  appeared  in  the 
New  York  Journal,  the  organ  of  the  State  adminis 
tration.  It  was  signed  "Cato,"  but  it  was  well 
known  that  Clinton  himself  was  the  author.  In 
allusion  to  this  signature,  Hamilton  replied  over  the 
signature  of  "  Caesar/7  by  which  he  meant  to  suggest 
that  sheer  obstinacy  of  the  Cato  type  played  into 
the  hands  of  demagogy  of  the  Caesar  type.  The  allu 
sion  was  too  far-fetched  to  be  understanded  of  the 
people,  and  it  exposed  Hamilton  to  rejoinders  in 
which  he  was  put  on  the  defensive.  Hamilton  had 
no  turn  for  humor  or  satire.  The  few  examples 
found  in  his  writings  are  the  only  instances  in  which 
his  pen  suffered  from  awkwardness.  His  "Caesar" 
articles  were  a  false  move,  of  which  his  adversaries 
took  prompt  advantage.  Clinton,  as  "Cato,"  con 
tinued  to  address  the  public  with  effect,  and  his 
attacks  on  the  new  Constitution  were  strongly  rein 
forced  by  a  series  of  able  articles  by  "Brutus," 
which  signature  was  known  to  be  that  used  by 
Robert  Yates,  judge  of  the  State  supreme  court 
and  one  of  the  delegates  who  had  withdrawn  from 
the  Philadelphia  convention. 

At  this  time  not  only  was  Hamilton  getting  rather 
the  worst  of  it  in  the  argument,  but  his  pride  was 
stung  by  some  of  the  personal  slurs  put  into  cir- 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  201 

culation.  He  wrote  to  Washington  that  "  among 
many  contemptible  artifices  practiced  by  them  they 
have  had  recourse  to  an  insinuation  that  I  palmed 
myself  upon  you,  and  that  you  dismissed  me  from 
your  family.  This  I  confess  hurts  my  feelings." 
This  had  reference  to  the  way  Hamilton  had  thrown 
up  his  position  as  Washington's  military  secretary 
during  the  war;  an  affair  in  which  he  displayed 
boyish  vanity  and  which  now  came  back  to  plague 
him.  Washington,  with  characteristic  magnanim 
ity,  at  once  wrote  a  letter  declaring  "that  both 
charges  are  entirely  unfounded." 

Before  Washington's  reply  was  received  Hamilton 
had  regained  his  poise.  A  trait  of  character  dis 
played  throughout  his  whole  career  was  that  no 
shock  of  circumstances  could  stun  his  mind  or  para 
lyze  its  activities.  His  spirits  then  rose,  his  mind 
was  then  clearest  in  its  vision,  and  his  powers  at 
tained  their  greatest  efficiency.  He  now  took  action 
which  put  his  opponents  on  the  defensive  and  kept 
them  there.  He  stripped  them  of  their  title  of  Fed 
eral  Republican  so  completely  that  they  themselves 
had  to  accept  the  name  and  place  of  Antifederalists 
to  which  he  assigned  them.  This  huge  change  was 
accomplished  by  The  Federalist,  the  first  number  of 
which  appeared  on  October  27,  in  the  Independent 
Journal,  over  the  pen-name  of  "Publius."  At  one 
stroke  Hamilton  lifted  the  controversy  from  the 
smoky  atmosphere  of  passion  into  the  clear  light  of 


202  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

reason.  "It  seems,"  he  said,  "to  have  been  re 
served  to  the  people  of  this  country,  by  their  con 
duct  and  example,  to  decide  the  important  question, 
whether  societies  of  men  are  really  capable  or  not 
of  establishing  good  government  from  reflection  and 
choice,  or  whether  they  are  forever  destined  to  de 
pend  for  their  political  constitutions  on  accident 
and  force."  He  went  on:  "If  there  be  any  truth  in 
the  remark,  the  crisis  at  which  we  are  arrived  may 
with  propriety  be  regarded  as  the  era  in  which  that 
decision  is  to  be  made;  and  a  wrong  election  of  the 
part  we  shall  act  may,  in  this  view,  deserve  to  be 
considered  as  the  general  misfortune  of  mankind." 
This  was  certainly  putting  the  matter  on  a  very 
high  and  broad  plane,  which  he  went  on  to  survey 
with  appropriate  dignity  of  style.  Upon  these  no 
ble  premises  he  announced  his  intention,  "in  a  se 
ries  of  papers,  to  discuss  the  following  interesting 
particulars": 

The  utility  of  the  UNION  to  your  political  prosperity 
— The  insufficiency  of  the  present  Confederation  to  pre 
serve  that  Union — The  necessity  of  a  government  at  least 
equally  energetic  with  the  one  proposed,  to  the  attain 
ment  of  this  object — The  conformity  of  the  proposed 
Constitution  to  the  true  principles  of  republican  govern 
ment — Its  analogy  to  your  owiuState  constitution — and 
lastly,  The  additional  security  which  its  adoption  will 
afford  to  the  preservation  of  that  species  of  government, 
to  liberty,  and  to  property. 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  203 

This  large  project,  carried  out  in  the  midst  of 
electioneering  activities,  in  addition  to  engagements 
arising  from  law  practice,  was,  in  fact,  more  than  ful 
filled  by  the  actual  performance.  The  task  was 
completed  in  eighty-five  letters  appearing  in  the 
space  of  seven  months.  These  casual  essays,  rap 
idly  produced  for  immediate  service,  alone  among 
all  the  voluminous  writings  of  the  period,  have  sur 
vived  to  become  a  political  classic.  It  is  related  by 
his  son  that  Hamilton  wrote  the  memorable  first 
number  in  the  cabin  of  a  sloop  while  returning  to 
New  York  from  Albany,  where  he  had  been  attend 
ing  to  cases  before  the  State  supreme  court.  The 
labor  of  carrying  on  the  series  amidst  his  other  en 
gagements  was  so  burdensome  that  he  asked  help 
from  his  friends,  and  both  Jay  and  Madison  con 
tributed,  but  the  great  majority  of  the  articles  were 
by  Hamilton.  Their  power  secured  immediate  at 
tention,  and  so  great  was  the  public  interest  that 
even  the  New  York  Journal,  the  organ  of  the  State 
administration,  reprinted  a  number.  The  regular 
publication  was  made  alternately  in  the  Independent 
Journal  and  in  the  Daily  Advertiser,  and  portions 
were  frequently  copied  by  journals  in  other  States. 

In  New  York  City  the  Federalists  swept  all  before 
them,  but  elsewhere  Clinton's  control  of  the  situa 
tion  was  unbroken.  When  the  convention  met  in 
June,  1788,  to  pass  upon  the  question  of  adoption, 
Governor  Clinton  was  chosen  to  preside,  and  it  was 


204  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

then  computed  that  out  of  the  fifty-seven  delegates 
the  Federalists  could  count  assuredly  upon  only 
eleven.  The  debates  lasted  for  three  weeks,  Hamil 
ton  taking  an  active  and  prominent  part.  His  oppo 
nents  found  it  easier  to  say  that  he  was  dishing  up 
The  Federalist  again  than  to  reply  to  his  arguments. 
The  Antifederalists  were  in  an  awkward  situation. 
Their  leaders  could  not  hold  that  the  existing  system 
of  general  government  was  satisfactory,  and  yet 
there  was  no  practical  alternative  to  acceptance  of 
the  new  Constitution.  While  they  delayed  action 
by  New  York,  enough  States  had  ratified  the  Consti 
tution  to  put  it  into  effect,  and  eventually  they  gave 
way.  On  July  26  ratification  was  carried  by  30  yeas 
to  27  nays. 

Governor  Clinton  wrote  to  General  Lamb  that 
Hamilton  had  threatened  that  in  case  of  defeat  the 
southern  end  of  the  State  would  adopt  the  Constitu 
tion  as  an  independent  State,  leaving  the  interior 
counties  without  any  outlet  to  the  sea  for  their 
commerce.  It  is  certain  that  in  New  York  City 
support  of  the  new  Constitution  was  overwhelmingly 
strong.  Three  days  before  the  final  action  of  the 
convention  a  grand  popular  demonstration  took 
place.  The  plans  had  been  made  and  the  arrange 
ments  supervised  by  Major  Pierre  L'Enfant,  a 
French  engineer,  who  during  the  war  had  been  an 
aide  of  Baron  Steuben.  A  man  of  fine  taste,  an 
enduring  memorial  of  which  is  the  way  in  which  he 


THE  WONDERFUL  YEAR  205 

laid  out  the  city  of  Washington,  he  arranged  the 
Federalist  procession  with  a  splendor  of  effect  that 
can  never  be  surpassed;  now  that  machinery  has 
taken  over  so  many  of  the  old  handicrafts.  The 
blacksmiths  began  and  completed  an  anchor  on  their 
stage  during  the  march,  under  a  banner  inscribed : 

"Forge  me  strong,  finish  me  neat, 
I  soon  shall  moor  a  Federal  fleet." 

The  sail-makers,  too,  exercised  their  craft,  with  the 
motto : 

"Fit  me  well,  and  rig  me  neat, 
And  join  me  to  the  Federal  fleet." 

The  stone-masons  displayed  a  temple  supported  by 
thirteen  pillars,  three  of  which  were  significantly 
shown  as  unfinished,  and  above  them  the  motto: 

"The  foundation  is  firm,  the  materials  are  good, 
Each  pillar's  cemented  with  patriots'  blood." 

All  trades,  degrees,  professions,  and  interests  were 
represented  in  the  procession,  but  the  chief  feature 
was  a  full-rigged  ship,  the  Hamilton,  fully  manned, 
armed,  and  equipped. 


CHAPTER  XV 
A   BREACH   IN   THE   CONSTITUTIONAL   SCHEME 

THE  adoption  of  the  Constitution  by  the  requisite 
number  of  States  barely  insured  a  trial  of  the  new 
scheme  of  government;  whether  it  would  make  good 
was  very  doubtful.  It  satisfied  nobody,  and  was 
accepted  by  its  best  friends  simply  on  the  principle 
that  half  a  loaf  is  better  than  no  bread.  Its  enemies 
were  active  and  determined.  Patrick  Henry,  of 
Virginia,  expressed  their  general  sentiment  when  he 
said  that  he  would  "seize  the  first  moment  for 
shaking  off  the  yoke  in  a  constitutional  way."  The 
original  idea  of  the  Antifederalist  leaders  had  been 
to  work  through  the  Continental  Congress.  It  was 
probably  only  in  the  way  of  precaution  that  Hamil 
ton  again  became  a  member  of  that  body  in  Febru 
ary,  1788,  but  its  proceedings  turned  out  to  be  quite 
unimportant.  In  the  autumn  of  1788  a  few  mem 
bers  attended;  gradually  they  fell  off  and  the  Con 
gress  finally  came  to  an  end  without  adjournment  or 
any  formal  action. 

The  method  now  adopted  by  the  Antifederalists 
was  to  agitate  for  the  meeting  of  another  convention 
to  revise  the  work  of  the  Philadelphia  convention. 
Patrick  Henry's  influence  carried  a  resolution  to  that 

206 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     207 

effect  through  the  Virginia  Assembly  by  a  vote  of 
more  than  two  to  one.  In  New  York  the  opponents 
of  the  new  Constitution  revived  the  old  association 
of  " Federal  Republicans"  under  the  leadership  of 
General  John  Lamb,  and  an  address  to  the  several 
States  was  issued  in  favor  of  electing  delegates  to 
another  convention.  Governor  Clinton  called  a 
special  session  of  the  legislature,  and  in  his  message 
asserted  that  the  Constitution  had  been  ratified  "  on 
the  express  confidence,  that  the  exercise  of  the  dif 
ferent  powers  would  be  suspended  until  it  should 
undergo  a  revision  by  a  general  convention  of  the 
States."  No  positive  action  was  taken  by  the  legis 
lature,  but  New  York  took  no  part  in  the  Presi 
dential  election,  the  appointment  of  electors  being 
defeated  by  obstinate  disagreement  between  the 
Senate  and  the  Assembly. 

While  the  opponents  of  the  Constitution  were 
planning  to  overthrow  it,  its  adherents  were  dis 
turbed  by  reports  that  Washington  was  unwilling 
to  serve  as  President.  Hamilton  regarded  this  as 
a  vital  matter,  and  he  entered  into  a  correspondence 
with  Washington,  remarkable  for  its  candor  and 
urgency.  Washington  wrote:  "It  is  my  great  and 
sole  desire  to  live  and  die  in  peace  and  retirement 
on  my  own  farm."  Hamilton's  rejoinder  was  vir 
tually  that  he  had  no  right  to  give  himself  that 
indulgence.  "In  a  matter  so  essential  to  the  well- 
being  of  society  as  the  prosperity  of  a  newly-insti- 


208  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

tuted  government,  a  citizen  of  so  much  consequence 
as  yourself  to  its  success  has  no  option  but  to  lend 
his  services  if  called  for.  Permit  me  to  say,  it  would 
be  inglorious,  in  such  a  situation,  not  to  hazard  the 
glory,  however  great,  which  he  might  have  previously 
acquired."  Hamilton  went  on  to  point  out  that 
Washington  had  committed  himself  by  recommend 
ing  the  new  Constitution  for  adoption,  so  he  would 
not  escape  blame  if  it  should  turn  out  to  be  a  failure, 
which  it  would  be  without  his  aid.  Washington  took 
all  this  in  good  part,  telling  Hamilton  he  was  "par 
ticularly  glad  that  you  have  dealt  thus  freely  and 
like  a  friend."  It  was  not  in  Washington's  nature 
to  refuse  to  do  his  duty,  and  Hamilton  applied  just 
the  kind  of  pressure  to  which  he  would  yield,  but  he 
thought  it  hard  that  after  eight  years  of  campaign 
ing  he  should  not  be  allowed  to  retire.  He  was  en 
tirely  sincere  in  declaring:  "If  I  should  be  prevailed 
upon  to  accept  it,  the  acceptance  would  be  attended 
with  more  diffidence  and  reluctance  than  I  ever  ex 
perienced  before  in  my  life."  Hamilton  would  not 
allow  him  any  loophole;  his  acceptance  was  indis 
pensable;  circumstances  left  no  option.  "It  is  no 
compliment  to  say,  that  no  other  man  can  sufficiently 
unite  the  public  opinion,  or  can  give  the  requisite 
weight  to  the  office,  in  the  commencement  of  the 
government." 

The  same  logic  by  which  Hamilton  engaged  Wash 
ington  to  public  service  also  engaged  himself  should 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     209 

Washington  summon  him,  which  he  did  at  the  out 
set  of  his  administration.  While  passing  through 
Philadelphia,  Washington  saw  Robert  Morris  and 
inquired  whether  he  would  be  willing  to  resume 
charge  of  the  Treasury  Department.  Morris  de 
clined,  but  strongly  recommended  Hamilton,  and 
soon  after  reaching  New  York  Washington  offered 
Hamilton  the  post.  In  accepting  it  Hamilton  went 
against  the  advice  of  some  of  his  best  friends.  Gou- 
verneur  Morris  warned  him  against  taking  a  position 
in  which  he  would  have  to  bear  calumny  and  perse 
cution.  "Of  that,"  Hamilton  replied,  "I  am  aware; 
but  I  am  convinced  it  is  the  situation  in  which  I  can 
do  most  good."  Robert  Troup,  who  was  Hamilton's 
closest  friend  at  the  New  York  bar,  was  asked  by 
him  to  wind  up  his  law  business.  "I  remonstrated 
with  him,"  wrote  Troup,  in  a  letter  giving  an  ac 
count  of  the  incident;  "he  admitted  that  his  accep 
tance  would  be  likely  to  injure  his  family,  but  said 
there  was  a  strong  impression  on  his  mind  that  in 
the  financial  department  he  could  essentially  pro 
mote  the  welfare  of  the  country;  and  this  impression, 
united  with  Washington's  request,  forbade  his  re 
fusal  of  the  appointment." 

As  it  turned  out,  the  Antifederalists  were  not 
strong  enough  to  overthrow  the  Constitution,  but 
they  were  able  to  give  it  a  twist  that  defeated  the 
main  feature  of  the  original  design,  which  was  to 
complete  and  establish  the  executive  authority  that 


210  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

had  been  already  introduced,  and  at  the  same  time 
erect  barriers  against  Congressional  invasion  of  ex 
ecutive  functions.  The  miserable  results  of  admin 
istration  of  public  services  by  committees  and  boards 
appointed  by  the  Continental  Congress  had  forced 
the  creation  of  executive  departments,  and  it  was 
the  practice  for  the  heads  of  those  departments  to 
go  before  the  Congress  with  plans  and  recommenda 
tions,  like  a  business  manager  appearing  before  a 
board  of  directors.  In  accepting  the  office  of  Secre 
tary  of  the  Treasury,  Hamilton  expected  to  have 
the  same  facilities  of  access  to  Congress  as  Robert 
Morris  had  possessed.  The  act  creating  the  Trea 
sury  Department  was  drawn  on  the  same  lines  as 
the  resolution  of  February  7,  1781,  creating  the  office 
of  Superintendent  of  Finance,  and  like  it  gave 
authority  "to  digest  and  report  plans."  An  attack 
was  made  in  Congress  on  this  clause,  which  resulted 
in  action  excluding  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
from  the  floor  and  condemning  him  to  work  in  the 
lobby.  This  alteration  of  the  constitutional  scheme 
has  had  and  is  having  profound  consequences.  To 
it  must  be  ascribed  the  singular  degradation  that  has 
taken  place  in  the  position  of  the  House  of  Repre 
sentatives,  and,  indeed,  the  whole  constitutional 
scheme  was  turned  awry  by  it,  which  fact  must  be 
allowed  for  in  reading  The  Federalist.  It  may  seem 
that  its  estimates  of  relative  power  and  importance 
in  the  various  organs  of  authority  are  sadly  out  of 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     211 

true  reckoning,  but  it  should  be  considered  that  the 
procedure  then  in  mind  differed  from  that  actually 
introduced. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  this  change  was  due 
more  to  James  Madison  than  any  one  else,  and  it 
was  the  first  manifestation  of  a  variance  that  soon 
developed  into  open  hostility.  Up  to  that  time 
Hamilton  and  Madison  had  been  working  in  friendly 
accord.  Hamilton  had  no  idea  that  there  was  any 
important  difference  in  their  views  on  public  policy. 
He  was  delighted  when  Madison  was  elected  to  the 
House,  and  counted  upon  his  aid.  In  1792  Hamil 
ton  wrote  to  a  friend: 

When  I  accepted  the  office  I  now  hold,  it  was  under  full 
persuasion,  that  from  similarity  of  thinking,  conspiring 
with  personal  good-will,  I  should  have  the  firm  support  of 
Mr.  Madison  in  the  general  course  of  my  administration. 
Aware  of  the  intrinsic  difficulties  of  the  situation,  and  of 
the  powers  of  Mr.  Madison,  I  do  not  believe  I  should 
have  accepted  under  a  different  supposition. 

In  the  First  Congress  Madison  occupied  a  position 
of  singular  influence.  In  addition  to  his  high  rank 
as  a  leader  in  the  movement  for  a  new  constitution 
he  was  regarded  as  the  possessor  of  Washington's 
confidence  and  as  an  exponent  of  the  policy  of  the 
Administration.  At  Washington's  request  Madison 
drafted  for  him  his  replies  to  the  addresses  of  the 
House  and  the  Senate  at  the  opening  of  the  session. 


212  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

He  took  the  leading  part  in  carrying  a  series  of 
amendments  to  the  Constitution  to  remove  some 
of  the  objections  that  had  been  urged  against  it. 
This  action  was  very  efficacious  in  allaying  hostility 
to  the  new  Constitution,  and  thereafter  many  who 
had  been  its  opponents  now  aimed  at  getting  con 
trol  of  the  new  government  and  shaping  procedure 
under  the  Constitution.  When  opposition  to  the 
government  formed  on  this  new  line,  Madison  him 
self  joined  it.  Hamilton  was  slow  in  recognizing 
this  change  of  attitude,  and  he  gave  Madison  his 
confidence  while  Madison  was  making  plans  for  his 
defeat. 

The  first  evidence  of  Madison's  opposition  came 
during  the  struggle  over  the  organization  of  the  gov 
ernment,  but  even  then,  although  perplexed  by  it, 
Hamilton  failed  to  comprehend  its  significance. 
When  the  business  of  creating  the  executive  depart 
ments  was  taken  in  hand,  there  was  at  the  outset  a 
sharp  contention  over  the  question  whether  the 
heads  of  departments  should  be  removable  by  the 
President.  On  such  issues  the  Antifederalists  as 
such  had  no  distinct  policy,  but  there  was  so  much 
uneasiness,  suspicion,  and  anxiety  that  it  was  easy 
to  stir  up  opposition  on  any  issue  that  might  be 
raised.  The  situation  was  favorable  to  the  activities 
of  an  experienced  politician  who  was  attached  to  the 
kind  of  government  originally  carried  on  by  the 
Continental  Congress,  and  who  was  bent  upon  rein- 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     213 

stating  it,  so  far  as  possible,  under  the  new  Consti 
tution.  Elbridge  Gerry  was  a  member  of  the  Con 
tinental  Congress  from  1776  to  1785.  As  a  delegate 
to  the  Philadelphia  convention  he  had  opposed  the 
main  features  of  the  new  Constitution,  and  he  was 
among  those  who  refused  to  sign  the  report  recom 
mending  it  to  the  States  for  adoption.  In  the  de 
bate  on  the  removal  power  he  introduced  a  style  of 
argument  that  has  flourished  in  Congress  ever  since 
— the  use  of  slur  and  innuendo  against  people  not 
present  to  defend  themselves.  He  dwelt  upon  the 
possibility  that  the  President  might  be  influenced  by 
other  than  public  motives  if  allowed  to  remove  from 
office  in  his  own  discretion.  "Perhaps  the  officer  is 
not  good-natured  enough;  he  makes  an  ungraceful 
bow,  or  does  it  left  leg  foremost;  this  is  most  unbe 
coming  in  a  great  officer  at  the  President's  levee. 
Now,  because  he  is  so  unfortunate  as  not  to  be  so 
good  a  dancer  as  he  is  a  worthy  officer,  he  must  be 
removed."  Madison  met  this  onslaught  by  the  sen 
sible  argument  that  the  President  could  not  be  held 
to  responsibility  unless  he  could  control  his  sub 
ordinates,  and  carried  the  house  with  him  by  a 
decisive  majority. 

What  Gerry  was  really  after  was  to  obtain  for 
Congress  the  same  direct  custody  of  public  funds 
that  the  Continental  Congress  had  formerly  pos 
sessed  and  had  reluctantly  surrendered  when  Robert 
Morris  was  made  Superintendent  of  Finance.  When 


214  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Morris  resigned  in  disgust  in  1784,  Congress  put  the 
treasury  in  the  hands  of  three  commissioners  ap 
pointed  and  supervised  by  it.  Gerry  now  labored 
hard  to  perpetuate  this  arrangement,  arguing  that 
to  allow  one  man  to  hold  an  office  of  such  power 
might  be  too  great  a  trial  to  any  one's  integrity 
and  would  at  least  give  continual  reason  to  suspect 
misconduct,  thus  repelling  popular  confidence  in 
the  new  government.  On  this  issue  Gerry  met  a 
crushing  defeat,  for  it  was  notorious  that  the  board 
system  of  treasury  management  had  been  accom 
panied  by  confusion,  extravagance,  and  dishonesty. 
Gerry  was  overwhelmed  by  instances  given  by  mem 
bers  from  their  personal  knowledge.  Wadsworth, 
of  Connecticut,  described  the  disorder  that  existed 
in  the  records  of  the  treasury  board  at  that  very 
time,  making  it  impossible  to  check  their  accounts, 
and  he  declared  that  they  had  handled  the  finances 
in  such  a  way  as  to  double  the  national  debt. 

When  they  were  defeated  in  the  attempt  to  per 
petuate  the  board  system,  it  became  the  object  of 
the  Antifederalists  to  reduce  the  authority  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  Page,  of  Virginia,  at 
tacked  the  authority  to  " digest  and  report  plans77 
as  an  attempt  to  give  the  administration  undue  in 
fluence  over  the  House.  Page  himself  was  a 
new  figure  in  the  national  field,  although  he  had 
been  active  and  prominent  in  his  own  State.  The 
opponents  of  the  new  government  at  once  fell 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     215 

in  line  with  him,  and  did  everything  they  could  to 
excite  suspicion  and  alarm  as  to  the  purposes  of  the 
national  leaders.  Gerry  declared:  "If  the  doctrine 
of  having  prime  and  great  ministers  of  state  was  once 
well  established,  he  did  not  doubt  but  that  we  should 
soon  see  them  distinguished  by  a  green  or  red  rib 
bon,  or  other  insignia  of  court  favor  and  patronage." 

The  debate  on  the  merits  of  the  case  went  heav 
ily  against  the  antis.  It  was  pointed  out  that  the 
true  way  to  keep  the  secretary  from  exercising 
undue  influence  over  the  House  was  to  confront 
him  with  his  responsibilities  in  the  presence  of  the 
House,  exposed  to  its  inquiry  and  to  its  criticism. 
Fisher  Ames  observed  that  merely  to  call  for  in 
formation  would  not  be  advantageous  to  the  House. 
"It  will  be  no  mark  of  inattention  or  neglect,  if  he 
take  time  to  consider  the  questions  you  propound; 
but  if  you  make  it  his  duty  to  furnish  you  plans  and 
he  neglect^  to  perform  it,  his  conduct  or  capacity 
is  virtually  impeached."  Sedgwick,  with  prophetic 
vision,  declared:  "Make  your  officer  responsible, 
and  the  presumption  is  that  plans  and  information 
are  properly  digested;  but  if  he  can  secrete  him 
self  behind  the  curtain,  he  might  create  a  noxious 
influence,  and  not  be  answerable  for  the  information 
he  gives." 

Argument  of  this  tenor  was  carrying  the  House 
with  it,  and  doubtless  the  clause  would  have  been 
adopted  in  its  original  form,  had  not  Madison  altered 


216  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

the  whole  situation  by  favoring  a  compromise,  to 
be  effected  by  changing  the  word  " report"  into 
"prepare/7  so  that  the  secretary  should  have  author 
ity  to  "digest  and  prepare  plans'7  but  should  no 
longer  have  authority  to  report  them  to  the  House, 
as  had  been  Robert  Morris's  practice.  Madison 
did  not  say  that  there  was  anything  wrong  about 
that  practice;  he  said  he  did  not  believe  that  the 
danger  apprehended  by  some  really  existed,  but  he 
admitted  that  "there  is  a  small  possibility,  though 
it  is  but  small,  that  an  officer  may  derive  a  weight 
from  this  circumstance,  and  have  some  degree  of 
influence  upon  the  deliberations  of  the  legislature." 
The  position  which  Madison  then  occupied  made  his 
advice  decisive,  and  the  change  of  phrase  was  agreed 
to  without  a  division. 

In  considering  the  nature  of  the  influences  which 
brought  about  this  profound  alteration  of  the  con 
stitutional  scheme,  it  should  be  noted  that  it  was 
favored  by  a  school  of  political  thought  according 
to  which  the  principle  of  the  separation  of  powers  as 
laid  down  by  Montesquieu  in  his  Spirit  of  the  Laws 
required  not  only  that  the  executive,  legislative,  and 
judicial  branches  of  government  should  be  sep 
arately  constituted,  but  that  furthermore  they 
should  be  entirely  disconnected.  The  only  logical 
formulation  of  this  doctrine  in  eighteenth-century 
constitution-making  is  contained  in  the  French 
constitution  of  1791,  which  makes  it  the  exclusive 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     217 

function  of  the  national  legislative  assembly  "to 
propose  and  enact  the  laws;  the  King  can  only 
invite  the  legislative  body  to  take  the  matter  under 
consideration."  Very  different  is  the  language  of 
the  American  Constitution  as  to  the  functions  of 
the  President.  "He  shall,  from  time  to  time,  give 
to  the  Congress  information  of  the  state  of  the 
Union,  and  recommend  to  their  consideration  such 
measures  as  he  shall  judge  necessary  and  expedi 
ent."  This  power  of  executive  recommendation 
was  that  which  had  been  developed  under  the  Con 
federation  by  the  creation  of  executive  departments, 
which  system  the  Constitution  was  expected  by 
Hamilton  to  confirm.  One  of  the  points  made  by 
the  opponents  of  the  new  Constitution  was  that  it 
violated  the  principles  of  constitutional  government 
as  stated  by  Montesquieu.  Logically,  it  is  only 
fair  to  say  that  the  point  was  well  taken.  The 
truth  is  that  the  f ramers  of  the  Constitution  were  not 
animated  by  doctrinaire  notions  of  government  but 
by  the  need  of  practical  measures  to  arrest  the  drift 
to  anarchy  and  to  establish  national  authority. 
The  model  they  had  in  mind  was  the  English  consti 
tution,  and  for  theoretical  exposition  of  it  they 
looked  to  Blackstone's  Commentaries  and  not  to 
Montesquieu's  Spirit  of  the  Laws.  Nor  is  there 
any  evidence  that  doctrinaire  opinion  of  the  Montes 
quieu  type  formed  any  considerable  element  of  Anti- 
federalist  opinion.  The  force  which  that  possessed 


218  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

was  derived  from  the  prejudices  and  interests  of 
local  politics.  Its  favorite  citation  from  Montes 
quieu  was  his  dictum  that  "it  is  natural  to  a  republic 
to  have  only  a  small  territory;  otherwise  it  cannot 
long  subsist."  To  this  argument,  which  was  urged 
by  Clinton,  Hamilton  made  a  strong  reply  in  No.  9 
of  The  Federalist,  on  "The  Union  as  a  Safeguard 
against  Domestic  Disturbances. "  It  may  be  added 
that  this  particular  doctrine  of  Montesquieu  was 
strongly  condemned  by  Jefferson  in  1801,  when  he 
bluntly  characterized  it  as  "a  falsehood." 

If  Madison  accepted  Montesquieu's  doctrine  of 
the  separation  of  the  powers,  his  action  in  shutting 
out  the  Administration  from  direct  access  to  Congress 
with  legislative  proposals  was  logical  and  consistent. 
But  as  a  matter  of  fact  he  did  not  accept  that  doc 
trine.  To  refute  it  was  one  of  the  tasks  he  assumed 
in  his  contributions  to  The  Federalist.  In  Nos.  47 
and  48  he  examined  at  length  the  constitutional 
significance  to  be  properly  allowed  to  the  doctrine 
of  the  separation  of  the  powers.  With  a  logical 
evasiveness  rather  characteristic  of  his  mentality 
he  did  not  attempt  to  state  or  analyze  Montesquieu's 
own  formulation  of  his  doctrine,  but,  after  mention 
ing  that  Montesquieu  derived  the  doctrine  from  his 
study  of  the  British  constitution,  he  remarked  then : 
"Let  us  recur  to  the  source  from  which  the  maxim 
was  drawn."  He  then  proceeded  to  give  an  account 
of  the  British  constitution,  which  is  really  Black- 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     219 

stone's  and  not  Montesquieu's,  and  in  that  way 
figured  out  that  the  principle  of  separation  "does 
not  require  that  the  legislative,  executive,  and  ju 
diciary  departments  should  be  wholly  unconnected 
with  each  other/7  On  the  contrary,  he  argued 
that,  "unless  these  departments  be  so  far  connected 
and  blended  as  to  give  each  a  constitutional  control 
over  the  others,  the  degree  of  separation  which  the 
maxim  requires,  as  essential  to  a  free  government, 
can  never  in  practice  be  duly  maintained."  Truer 
words  were  never  written,  as  the  whole  course  of 
American  politics  abundantly  attests. 

Why,  then,  did  Madison  violate  his  own  principles, 
to  bring  about  an  arrangement  that  in  effect  threw 
the  new  Congress  back  into  the  dirty  ruts  of  the 
Continental  Congress?  This  is  a  question  that  has 
bothered  his  biographers.  Gaillard  Hunt's  masterly 
Life  of  James  Madison  candidly  admits  that  "Madi 
son  at  this  period  of  his  career  often  found  himself 
in  a  position  foreign  to  his  former  political  habits/' 
and  that  his  course  was  steered  by  calculations  of 
expediency  rather  than  by  principle.  The  truth  of 
the  matter  appears  to  be  that  Madison  was  more 
notable  for  keenness  of  intelligence  than  strength 
of  character.  Fisher  Ames,  in  his  private  corre 
spondence  at  this  period,  while  speaking  with  great 
respect  of  Madison's  abilities,  noted  that  he  was  very 
timid  on  any  point  affecting  Virginia  politics,  "whose 
murmurs,  if  louder  than  a  whisper,  make  Mr. 


220  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Madison's  heart  quake."  Hamilton  had  as  great, 
and  probably  greater,  antagonism  to  encounter  in 
New  York  politics,  but  nothing  could  make  his 
heart  quake.  His  way  of  meeting  opposition  was  to 
confront  it  and  overthrow  it  by  superior  force  of 
argument.  Madison  betook  himself  to  tactics  and 
cajolery.  Examination  of  his  correspondence  and 
of  his  course  in  Congress  at  this  period  leaves  no 
doubt  that  his  main  consideration  was  to  please 
the  home  districts.  With  this  purpose  in  view,  the 
question  of  the  site  of  the  national  capital  took  the 
lead  over  everything  else  in  Madison's  mind.  As  a 
member  of  the  Continental  Congress  he  had  tried 
hard  to  defeat  the  selection  of  New  York  as  a  meet 
ing-place,  and  as  a  member  of  the  new  Congress  he 
was  bent  upon  getting  away  from  New  York  as 
soon  as  possible.  His  politics  now  pivoted  upon  that 
issue.  Senator  Maclay's  diary  notes  that  on  the 
very  day  General  St.  Clair  came  out  against  the 
Potomac  site  Madison  made  a  motion  to  reduce 
St.  Glair's  salary  as  governor  of  the  Western  Terri 
tory,  although  previously  he  had  favored  a  larger 
amount. 

A  man  playing  this  sort  of  politics  would  be 
naturally  unwilling  to  let  so  able  and  forceful  a 
speaker  as  Hamilton  reach  the  floor  of  the  House  if 
he  could  prevent  it.  Probably  he  did  not  act  in  a 
spirit  of  hostility  to  Hamilton  as  a  man  or  as  an 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  SCHEME     221 

officer,  but  to  Hamilton  as  a  New  York  politician. 
He  pointed  out  that  the  way  was  left  open  for  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  appear  before  the  House 
whenever  it  should  see  fit  to  call  him,  and  there  are 
indications  that  Hamilton  believed  that  considera 
tions  of  convenience  would  tend  to  maintain  the 
practice  that  had  been  developed  in  the  Confedera 
tion  period  with  manifest  benefit  to  the  character  of 
the  government.  His  own  sanguine  temperament 
probably  helped  to  mislead  him  in  his  estimate  of 
the  situation.  At  any  rate  he  was  so  completely  in 
the  dark  as  to  Madison's  intentions  that  he  assumed 
that  the  confidential  intimacy  that  had  continued 
throughout  years  of  struggle  for  the  new  Constitution 
was  still  unbroken  and  that  Madison  still  adhered 
to  the  principles  he  then  professed.  On  the  cardinal 
principle  of  Hamilton's  financial  policy,  the  assump 
tion  by  the  national  government  of  the  debts  con 
tracted  by  the  States  during  the  war,  Hamilton  had 
no  doubt  whatever  of  Madison's  support,  for  as  a 
member  of  the  Continental  Congress  Madison  had 
strongly  advocated  assumption  and  during  the  sit 
tings  of  the  constitutional  convention  had  again  de 
clared  himself  in  favor  of  it.  Hamilton  seems  to 
have  had  no  suspicion  that  the  violent  opposition 
to  assumption  that  had  developed  in  Virginia  had 
swung  Madison  into  line  with  it,  and  Madison  seems 
to  have  been  careful  not  to  disclose  his  change  of 


222  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

views.     On  October  12^1789,  Hamilton  wrote  to 
Madison: 

I  don't  know  how  it  was,  but  I  took  it  for  granted  that 
you  had  left  town  earlier  than  I  did;  else  I  should  have 
found  an  opportunity,  after  your  adjournment,  to  con 
verse  with  you  on  the  subjects  committed  to  me  by  the 
House  of  Representatives.  It  is  certainly  important  that 
a  plan  as  complete  and  as  unexceptionable  as  possible 
should  be  matured  by  the  next  meeting  of  Congress;  and 
for  this  purpose  it  could  not  but  be  useful  that  there 
should  be  a  comparison  and  concentration  of  ideas,  of 
those  whose  duty  leads  them  to  a  contemplation  of  the 
subject.  As  I  lost  the  opportunity  of  a  personal  com 
munication,  may  I  ask  of  your  friendship,  to  put  to  paper 
and  send  me  your  thoughts  on  such  objects  as  may  have 
occurred  to  you,  for  an  addition  to  our  revenue,  and  also 
as  to  any  modifications  of  the  public  debt,  which  could 
be  made  consistent  with  good  faith — the  interest  of  the 
public  and  of  the  creditors. 

Madison's  reply  to  this  has  not  been  preserved. 
It  must  have  been  indefinite;  for  Hamilton  seems  still 
to  have  counted  upon  Madison's  support;  but  when 
his  plan  was  actually  presented  to  Congress,  Hamil 
ton  was  chagrined  and  mortified  to  find  that  Madi 
son  was  flatly  opposed  to  every  feature  of  it. 


CHAPTER  XVI 
HAMILTON'S  RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED 

ALTHOUGH  Hamilton  took  an  active  part  in  the 
arrangements  for  setting  up  the  new  government, 
he  did  not  take  office  until  near  the  close  of  the  first 
session.  In  the  creative  enactments  the  Treasury 
Department  came  last,  but  Washington  waited 
until  the  list  was  complete  before  making  any  of  his 
cabinet  appointments,  and  Hamilton  was  the  first 
to  be  commissioned — September  2,  1789.  Then 
followed  Henry  Knox,  as  Secretary  of  War  and  of 
the  Navy,  September  12;  Thomas  Jefferson,  Secre 
tary  of  State;  and  Edmund  Randolph,  Attorney- 
General,  September  26.  Jefferson,  who  was  then 
in  France,  did  not  assume  the  duties  of  his  office 
until  March  21,  1790.  Besides  these  cabinet  officers 
there  was  a  postmaster-general,  but  he  was  then 
considered  a  purely  business  functionary  who  was 
not  consulted  upon  matters  of  general  policy.  The 
office  was  not  raised  to  cabinet  rank  until  1829. 

Shortly  after  Hamilton  took  office  the  House 
resolved  that  "an  adequate  provision  for  the  sup 
port  of  the  public  credit"  should  be  made,  and  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  was  directed  "to  prepare 

223 


224  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

a  plan  for  that  purpose  and  to  report  the  same  to 
the  House  at  its  next  meeting."  The  House  soon 
after  adjourned  until  January,  1790.  Meanwhile 
Hamilton  was  to  organize  his  office,  digest  and  for 
mulate  his  plans,  all  of  which  he  did  with  a  thorough 
ness  that  made  his  arrangements  solid  and  durable. 
Doubtless  his  old  commercial  experience  and  his 
recent  banking  experience  were  now  of  great  value 
to  him.  The  confusion  and  disorder  in  which  he 
found  the  Treasury  Department  were  forthwith 
removed  and  a  system  of  accounts  was  introduced 
that  provided  clearness  and  accuracy  of  statement. 
It  soon  had  to  undergo  a  hostile  and  exacting  scru 
tiny,  but  it  passed  unscathed  through  every  test, 
and  it  has  remained  as  the  permanent  basis  of 
treasury  methods. 

It  may  be  doubted  whether  in  all  the  world's  his 
tory  any  statesman  save  Alexander  Hamilton  has 
had  to  cope  with  so  great  a  task  with  such  small 
resources  as  he  could  command  when  he  framed  his 
plans  to  lift  the  nation  out  of  bankruptcy  and  es 
tablish  the  public  credit.^  Default  in  interest  upon 
the  foreign  loans  had  gone  on  for  years,  and  public 
opinion — demoralized  by  paper  emissions  and  peri 
odical  scaling  of  obligations — had  become  indifferent 
to  the  situation.  The  domestic  debt  was  enormous 
in  amount  and  was  so  much  beyond  the  value  re 
ceived  for  it  that  the  feeling  was  wide-spread  that 
there  was  little  equity  in  the  claims  of  holders.  In 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED    225 

every  State  there  was  an  alert  opposition,  strong 
both  in  the  reputation  of  its  leaders  and  in  the  vol 
ume  of  popular  support,  ready  to  jump  upon  any 
proposal  running  counter  to  the  vulgar  prejudices 
and  distorted  standards  of  the  times.  The  member 
ship  of  Congress  naturally  tended  to  reflect  the  clash 
of  opinion  going  on  throughout  the  country,  and  the 
risks  of  this  situation  were  aggravated  by  the  pres 
ence  and  activity  of  experienced  politicians  intent  on 
forming  and  directing  faction  spirit  for  personal  ends. 
The  man  who  had  to  face  this  situation  had  no 
estate  to  secure  his  independence,  and  he  had  a 
growing  family  to  support.  The  circumstances  of 
his  career  supplied  his  enemies  with  material  in 
support  of  their  habitual  contention  that  he  was  a 
social  interloper  and  a  political  adventurer.  In  this 
respect,  perhaps,  he  was  not  much  worse  off  than 
Edmund  Burke,  in  England,  at  the  same  period, 
but  Burke  could  depend  upon  the  stanch  support 
of  the  rich  and  influential  Rockingham  Whig  con 
nection,  which  the  Schuyler  influence  in  New  York 
politics  could  but  poorly  replace,  for  at  best  it  was 
only  a  provincial  and  not  a  national  influence.  It 
may  be  doubted  whether  Hamilton  had  the  unhesi 
tating  support  of  the  Administration  of  which  he  was 
a  part,  in  the  period  during  which  his  financial  policy 
was  developed.  Washington's  correspondence  and 
his  behavior  indicate  that  at  this  time  he  was  on 
terms  of  greater  intimacy  with  Madison  than  with 


226  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Hamilton.  According  to  Jefferson,  Washington  was 
originally  more  inclined  to  confide  in  him  and  in 
Madison  than  in  Hamilton,  and  what  evidence  there 
is  rather  supports  this  view.  It  is  certainly  the  case 
that  so  late  as  1793,  long  after  Madison  had  become 
Hamilton's  open  enemy,  Washington  proposed  giv 
ing  Madison  the  State  Department  on  Jefferson's 
retirement  but  was  told  that  he  would  not  accept 
it.  There  are  indications  that  the  relations  between 
Washington  and  Hamilton  were  not  then  very  cor 
dial.  It  was  easy  for  a  man  of  Washington's  mag 
nanimity  to  overlook  the  youthful  vanity  and  irri 
tability  with  which  Hamilton  had  behaved  to  him 
in  the  past,  but  his  knowledge  of  Hamilton's  touchi 
ness  doubtless  affected  Washington's  relations  with 
him.  Add  to  all  these  disabling  circumstances  the 
fact  that  Hamilton  was  not  allowed  to  explain 
and  defend  his  plans  in  the  presence  of  the  body 
that  was  to  pass  judgment  upon  them,  and  then 
could  any  statesman  be  worse  situated  for  accom 
plishing  designs  intended  for  nothing  less  than 
creating  a  nation? 

When  Congress  again  met  the  first  day  was  con 
sumed  by  the  opening  exercises.  On  the  next  day 
a  letter  from  Hamilton  was  read  in  the  House  stat 
ing  that  he  had  prepared  a  plan  in  response  to  the 
resolution  of  the  previous  session  and  was  ready  to 
report  the  same  to  the  House  when  they  should  be 
pleased  to  receive  it.  This  announcement  at  once 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED     227 

renewed  the  issue  that  had  been  fought  over  in  the 
previous  session.  Gerry  was  on  his  feet  at  once  with 
a  motion  that  the  report  should  be  made  in  writing. 
This  brought  forth  some  earnest  appeals  that  the 
Secretary  be  allowed  the  means  of  making  a  full 
communication  of  his  ideas.  Boudinot,  of  New 
Jersey,  "  hoped  that  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
might  be  permitted  to  make  his  report  in  person, 
in  order  to  answer  such  inquiries  as  the  members 
might  be  disposed  to  make,  for  it  was  a  justifiable 
surmise  that  gentlemen  would  not  be  able  to  com 
prehend  so  intricate  a  subject  without  oral  illustra 
tions."  Benson,  of  New  York,  contended  that  since 
the  resolution  of  Congress  had  directed  the  Secre 
tary  to  make  a  report,  it  was  left  to  his  discretion 
to  "make  it  in  the  manner  for  which  he  is  prepared." 
Gerry,  who  was  as  adroit  as  he  was  unscrupulous, 
turned  this  argument  to  the  advantage  of  his  side 
by  arguing  that  the  first  step  was  to  get  from  the 
Secretary  the  report  called  for  by  the  resolution. 
That  done,  then  it  might  be  in  order  "to  give  him 
the  right  to  lay  before  them  his  explanations,  if  he 
thinks  explanations  necessary."  Acceptance  of  this 
view  was  facilitated  by  a  f eeling  in  the  House  that  it 
might  be  well  to  have  a  detailed  written  statement 
for  studious  examination.  Hence  Ames,  of  Massa 
chusetts,  who  had  formerly  strongly  championed  the 
personal  appearance  of  the  Secretary,  now  desired 
that  the  Secretary's  communications  be  first  put  in 


228  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

writing,  since  "in  this  shape  they  would  obtain  a 
degree  of  permanency  favorable  to  the  responsibility 
of  the  officer,  while,  at  the  same  time,  they  would 
be  less  liable  to  be  misunderstood."  The  result  of 
the  discussion  was  that  the  motion  calling  for  a 
written  report  was  adopted  without  a  division; 
but  the  intimation  that  the  Secretary  might  be  al 
lowed  a  hearing  later  on  was  never  acted  upon. 
Having  served  its  purpose  it  was  dropped,  and  the 
Secretary  was  never  accorded  an  opportunity  to 
make  explanations  or  reply  to  objections. 

It  would  seem  that  Hamilton  had  originally  pre 
pared  for  an  oral  address,  in  which  case — as  we  know 
from  his  papers — it  was  his  practice  to  make  only  a 
skeleton  brief  of  the  points  of  his  argument.  This 
brief  he  had  now  to  expand  into  a  written  statement, 
and  five  days  elapsed  before  it  was  laid  before  the 
House.  The  body  of  the  report  contains  over  20,000 
words  of  terse  argument,  and  it  was  accompanied 
by  schedules  of  greater  total  length.  Doubtless  the 
schedules  were  in  readiness  at  the  time  Hamilton 
made  his  offer  of  personal  appearance.  The  short 
time  he  took  to  put  his  views  in  writing  is  one  of  the 
many  instances  of  the  extraordinary  facility  with 
which  he  used  his  pen.  This  facility  was  founded 
upon  his  habit  of  thorough  analysis  of  his  subject 
before  attempting  any  presentation  of  his  views. 
His  power  of  mental  concentration  was  so  great  as 
to  make  him  for  the  time  oblivious  to  his  surround- 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED    229 

ings.  A  letter  from  General  Schuyler  to  his  daugh 
ter,  Mrs.  Hamilton,  gives  an  amusing  instance  of 
this,  at  the  very  time  Hamilton  was  framing  his 
financial  plans.  Writing  in  October,  1789,  Schuyler 
tells  how  a  gentleman  was  seen  walking  about, 
"apparently  in  deep  contemplation,  and  his  lips 
moving  as  rapidly  as  if  he  was  in  conversation  with 
some  person,"  and  how  a  shopkeeper  who  did  not 
know  who  he  was  refused  to  change  a  bill  for  him  for 
fear  of  being  involved  in  the  affairs  of  a  person  who 
seemed  to  be  not  quite  right  mentally.  "Pray, 
ask  my  Hamilton,"  wrrote  Schuyler,  "if  he  can't 
guess  who  the  gentleman  was." 

The  incident  related  by  Schuyler  was  exceptional. 
Hamilton's  ordinary  practice  was  to  retire  to  his 
study,  where  he  would  be  served  with  coffee,  and  then 
he  would  put  his  mind  on  his  task  with  steady  ap 
plication.  When  his  opinion  had  been  formed  by 
deep  study,  expression  of  it  then  proceeded  in  a 
rapid  and  orderly  manner.  He  wrote  carefully, 
forming  every  letter  distinctly,  so  that  his  manuscript 
is  always  easily  legible,  and  it  is  remarkably  free 
from  corrections.  The  clearness  of  his  style  came 
from  the  clearness  of  his  thought,  and  not  from  any 
process  of  literary  elaboration.  So  it  was  that  his 
report  of  January  9,  1790,  upon  the  public  credit, 
whose  clearness,  brilliancy,  and  power  now  strike 
with  admiration  every  one  who  reads  it,  was  proba 
bly  written  as  rapidly  as  pen  could  move  over  paper. 


230  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Broad  as  is  the  range  of  this  report  and  lofty  its 
aims,  the  policy  it  embodies  is  plain  and  simple — 
the  exact  and  punctual  fulfilment  of  obligations. 
"States,  like  individuals,  who  observe  their  engage 
ments  are  respected  and  trusted;  while  the  reverse 
is  the  fate  of  those  who  pursue  an  opposite  conduct." 
Such  a  complicated  variety  of  mischiefs  proceed 
from  neglect  of  the  maxims  that  uphold  public 
credit  that  "on  their  due  observance  at  the  present 
juncture,  materially  depends  ...  the  individual  and 
aggregate  prosperity  of  the  citizens  of  the  United 
States;  their  relief  from  the  embarrassments  they 
now  experience;  their  character  as  a  people;  the 
cause  of  good  government." 

With  a  high  confidence  that  was  triumphantly 
vindicated  by  the  results  of  his  measures,  but  which 
at  the  time  there  was  little  in  the  actual  situation 
to  justify,  Hamilton  declared: 

The  most  enlightened  friends  of  good  government  are 
those  whose  expectations  are  the  highest.  To  justify  and 
preserve  their  confidence;  to  promote  the  increasing  re 
spectability  of  the  American  name;  to  answer  the  calls 
of  justice;  to  restore  landed  property  to  its  due  value;  to 
furnish  new  resources,  both  to  agriculture  and  commerce; 
to  cement  more  closely  the  union  of  the  States ;  to  add  to 
their  security  against  foreign  attack;  to  establish  public 
order  on  the  basis  of  an  upright  and  liberal  policy; — these 
are  the  great  and  invaluable  ends  to  be  secured  by  a  proper 
and  adequate  provision,  at  the  present  period,  for  the 
support  of  public  credit. 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED    231 

Proceeding  to  details  of  policy,  he  remarked  that 
"the  Secretary  has  too  much  deference  for  the  opin 
ions  of  every  part  of  the  community,  not  to  have 
observed  one,  which  has  more  than  once  made  its 
appearance  in  the  public  prints,  and  which  is  occa 
sionally  to  be  met  with  in  conversation.  It  involves 
this  question :  '  Whether  a  discrimination  ought  not 
to  be  made  between  original  holders  of  public 
securities,  and  present  possessors  by  purchase. " 
He  then  put  the  case  in  favor  of  discrimination  as 
strongly  as  possible.  "In  favor  of  this  scheme,  it  is 
alleged  that  it  would  be  unreasonable  to  pay  twenty 
shillings  in  the  pound  to  one  who  had  not  given 
more  for  it  than  three  or  four.  And  it  is  added, 
that  it  would  be  hard  to  aggravate  the  misfortune 
of  the  first  owner,  who  probably  through  necessity, 
parted  with  his  property  at  so  great  a  loss,  by 
obliging  him  to  contribute  to  the  profit  of  the  per 
son  who  had  speculated  on  his  distresses." 

The  most  rabid  advocate  of  discrimination  could 
not  have  stated  his  case  with  more  vigor.  Hamil 
ton  then  stated  his  own  position  with  equal  positive- 
ness.  "The  Secretary,  after  the  most  mature  re 
flection  on  the  force  of  this  argument,  is  induced  to 
reject  the  doctrine  it  contains,  as  equally  unjust  and 
impolitic;  as  highly  injurious,  even  to  the  original 
holders  of  public  securitias;  as  ruinous  to  public 
credit."  He  proceeded  to  show  in  detail  why  this 
was  so,  supporting  his  reasoning  with  particular  illus- 


232  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

trations.  He  urged  that  any  attempt  at  discrimina 
tion  would  be  replete  with  absurd  as  well  as  inequi 
table  consequences.  "That  the  case  of  those  who 
parted  with  their  securities  from  necessity  is  a  hard 
one,  cannot  be  denied.  But  whatever  complaint  of 
injury,  or  claim  of  redress  they  may  have,  respects 
the  Government  solely.  They  have  not  only  noth 
ing  to  object  to  the  persons  who  relieved  their  neces 
sities,  by  giving  them  the  current  price  of  their  prop 
erty,  but  they  are  even  under  an  implied  condition 
to  contribute  to  the  reimbursement  of  those  persons. 
They  knew  that  by  the  terms  of  the  contract  with 
themselves,  the  public  were  bound  to  pay  those  to 
whom  they  should  convey  their  title  the  sums  stip 
ulated  to.be  paid  to  them;  and  that,  as  citizens 
of  the  United  States,  they  were  to  bear  their  pro 
portion  of  the  contribution  for  that  purpose.  This, 
by  the  act  of  assignment,  they  tacitly  engaged  to  do ; 
and,  if  they  had  an  option,  they  could  not,  with 
integrity  or  good  faith,  refuse  to  do  it,  without  the 
consent  of  those  to  whom  they  sold."  He  pointed 
out  that  the  purchaser  "  ought  to  reap  the  benefit 
of  his  hazard — a  hazard  which  was  far  from  incon 
siderable,  and  which,  perhaps,  turned  on  little  less 
than  a  revolution  in  government."  And  it  was  not 
necessarily  the  case  that  all  original  holders  sold 
through  necessity.  Some  might  have  done  so  to  raise 
money  for  profitable  investment,  and  were  better 
off  than  they  would  be  if  they  had  retained  their 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED    233 

securities  for  eventual  redemption.  How  should 
these  different  classes  be  discriminated  from  each 
other  ?  Discrimination,  once  admitted,  "would  oper 
ate  a  diminution  of  the  value  of  stock  in  the  hands 
of  the  first  as  well  as  of  every  other  holder,"  as 
without  security  of  transfer  no  one  could  tell  ex 
actly  what  there  was  to  buy  or  sell,  and  this  uncer 
tainty  would  be  destructive  of  the  availability  of 
public  stocks  for  purposes  of  commercial  accommo 
dation  and  currency  supply. 

It  is  a  marked  instance  of  Hamilton's  habit  of 
getting  down  to  fundamental  principles  in  framing  a 
case  that  he  examined  at  length  the  equities  of  the 
situation  before  citing  the  solemn  pledges  of  Congress 
to  redeem  the  public  obligations  at  their  face  value 
without  any  attempt  to  discriminate  between  dif 
ferent  classes  of  creditors.  These  pledges  alone 
should  have  sufficed  to  settle  the  matter  without 
further  discussion,  but  it  soon  appeared  that  regard 
for  public  faith  was  so  weak  in  Congress  that  there 
was  real  need  for  the  argument  that  it  pays  to  be 
honest. 

Another  matter  to  which  Hamilton  gave  detailed 
consideration  was  assumption  by  the  nation  of  the 
debts  contracted  by  the  States  during  the  war. 
Inasmuch  as  the  debts  had  been  contracted  for  the 
common  cause  of  independence  it  properly  followed 
that  they  should  form  a  common  charge  upon  the 
national  resources,  but  so  strong  were  particularist 


234  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

tendencies  that  this  view  was  not  readily  accepted, 
and  in  this  matter,  too,  Hamilton  felt  constrained 
to  press  considerations  of  particular  advantage 
even  from  the  narrow  view  of  State  interest.  "If 
all  the  public  creditors,"  he  observed,  "receive  their 
dues  from  one  source,  distributed  with  an  equal  hand, 
their  interest  will  be  the  same.  And  having  the 
same  interests,  they  will  unite  in  the  support  of 
the  fiscal  arrangements  of  the  Government — as 
these,  too,  can  be  made  with  more  convenience 
where  there  is  no  competition.  These  circum 
stances  combined,  will  ensure  to  the  revenue  laws 
a  more  ready  and  satisfactory  execution.  If,  on  the 
contrary,  there  are  distinct  provisions,  there  will  be 
distinct  interests,  drawing  different  ways.  That 
union  and  concert  of  views  among  the  creditors, 
which  in  every  Government  is  of  great  importance 
to  their  security,  and  to  that  of  public  credit,  will 
not  only  not  exist,  but  will  be  likely  to  give  place  to 
mutual  jealousy  and  opposition.  And  from  this 
cause,  the  operation  of  the  systems  which  may  be 
adopted,  both  by  the  particular  States  and  by  the 
Union,  with  relation  to  their  respective  debts,  will 
be  in  danger  of  being  counteracted." 

Here  we  have,  as  it  were  in  a  nutshell,  an  explana 
tion  of  the  fact  that  the  American  Constitution  actu 
ally  marched,  despite  the  fatal  tendency  of  written 
constitutions  to  remain  mere  inert  paper  schemes. 
The  actual  constitution  of  a  country  is  always  the 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED     235 

actual  distribution  of  political  power.  The  American 
Constitution  succeeded  because  Hamilton's  manage 
ment  accomplished  such  a  distribution  of  power  as 
to  secure  for  the  Union  such  a  general  attachment 
of  interests  as  to  counteract  particularist  tendencies. 
Hamilton  computed  the  amount  of  the  foreign 
debt  to  be,  principal  and  arrears,  $11,710,378.62; 
the  domestic  debt,  including  that  of  the  States, 
over  $42,000,000— a  total  of  over  $54,000,000,  with 
an  annual  interest  charge  of  $4,587,445,  apparently 
an  intolerable  burden  for  a  thinly  populated  country 
exhausted  by  seven  years  of  war.  Nevertheless, 
Hamilton  refused  to  admit  that  "such  a  provision 
would  exceed  the  abilities  of  the  country,"  but  he 
was  "  clearly  of  the  opinion  that  to  make  it  would 
require  the  extension  of  taxation  to  a  degree  and  to 
objects  which  the  true  interest  of  the  public  creditors 
forbids.'7  He  therefore  favored  a  composition,  in 
which  there  should  be  strict  adherence  to  the  prin 
ciple  "that  no  change  in  the  rights  of  its  creditors 
ought  to  be  attempted  without  their  voluntary 
consent;  and  that  this  consent  ought  to  be  voluntary 
in  fact  as  well  as  in  name.  .  .  .  Every  proposal 
of  a  change  ought  to  be  in  the  shape  of  an  appeal 
to  their  reason  and  to  their  interest,  not  to  their 
necessities."  He  then  went  into  details  of  a  funding 
loan,  in  which  various  options  were  offered  to  the 
creditors,  including  land  grants  in  part  payment  and 
conversion  in  whole  or  in  part  into  annuities,  several 


236  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

kinds  of  which  were  offered.  There  was  an  intricacy 
in  his  plans  which  might  not  have  been  a  hindrance 
to  them  could  he  have  been  present  to  reply  to 
questions  and  explain  details,  but  which  in  the  actual 
circumstances  was  a  clog,  and  eventually  the  scheme 
had  to  be  simplified  to  bring  it  within  reach  of  Con 
gressional  understanding.  He  submitted  estimates 
how  the  various  plans  of  composition  would  work 
out  in  practice,  and  he  concluded  that  an  annual 
revenue  of  $2,239,163.09  would  enable  the  Govern 
ment  to  meet  its  interest  obligations.  To  provide 
this  amount,  as  well  as  the  sum  necessary  to  defray 
the  current  expenses  of  the  Government,  he  sub 
mitted  in  particular  detail  a  scheme  of  taxation 
applying  mainly  to  wines,  distilled  spirits,  teas,  and 
coffee. 

Although  when  now  examined  under  the  instruc 
tions  of  history,  Hamilton's  plans  make  a  deep  im 
pression  of  grand  statesmanship,  many  members  of 
the  Congress  to  which  they  were  submitted  regarded 
them  as  wild  and  visionary.  Senator  Maclay,  of 
Pennsylvania,  in  his  private  diary — whose  publica 
tion  in  our  own  times  casts  many  instructive  side 
lights  upon  the  situation  with  which  Hamilton  had 
to  deal — characterized  the  whole  scheme  as  "a 
monument  of  political  absurdity."  In  his  opinion 
Hamilton  had  "a  very  boyish,  giddy  manner,  and 
Scotch-Irish  people  could  well  call  him  a  'skite." 
Hamilton's  supporters  figure  in  the  diary  as  his 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED    237 

"gladiators"  and  as  "a  corrupt  squadron."  Jack 
son,  of  Georgia,  regarded  it  as  sufficient  evidence  of 
the  folly  of  Hamilton's  proposals  that  to  adopt  them 
would  create  a  funded  debt,  the  inevitable  effect  of 
which  would  be  national  decay.  He  pointed  to 
England  as  "a  melancholy  instance  of  the  ruin  at 
tending  such  engagements."  If  it  were  asked  how 
otherwise  the  public  indebtedness  could  be  provided 
for,  the  answer  was  ready — by  repudiation,  in  whole 
or  in  part.  Livermore,  of  New  Hampshire,  admitted 
that  the  foreign  debt  should  be  acknowledged,  but 
the  domestic  debt  was  not  a  fair  obligation,  since  it 
was  "for  depreciated  paper,  or  services  done  at  ex 
orbitant  rates,  or  for  goods  and  provisions  supplied 
at  more  than  their  real  worth,  by  those  who  received 
all  the  benefits  arising  from  our  change  of  condi 
tion."  Page,  of  Virginia,  argued  that  "our  citizens 
were  deeply  interested,  and,  I  believe,  if  they  were 
never  to  get  a  farthing  for  what  is  owing  to  them  for 
their  services,  they  would  be  well  paid;  they  have 
gained  what  they  aimed  at;  they  have  secured  their 
liberties  and  their  laws."  When  such  argument  was 
confronted  with  the  solemn  pledges  of  the  Conti 
nental  Congress  that  the  obligations  contracted 
would  be  discharged  at  their  face  value,  it  was  ex 
plained  by  Livermore  that  this  was  merely  for  ef 
fect — that  it  was  "done  on  a  principle  of  policy,  in 
order  to  prevent  the  rapid  depreciation  which  was 
taking  place,"  and  that  those  who  would  now  take 


238  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

advantage  of  the  circumstance  were  not  animated 
by  a  spirit  of  patriotism  but  were  merely  a  set  of 
speculators. 

Repudiation  did  not  obtain  support  enough  to 
make  it  really  formidable,  and  the  only  dangerous 
attempt  to  impair  the  obligation  of  contracts  took 
the  form  of  a  movement  in  favor  of  discrimination. 
It  received  the  powerful  championship  of  Madison, 
who  in  his  efforts  to  adjust  his  behavior  to  the 
political  situation  in  his  State,  appears  now  to  have 
discarded  the  principles  he  used  to  profess.  In  a 
series  of  elaborate  speeches  he  argued  that  present 
holders  should  be  allowed  only  the  highest  market 
price  previously  recorded,  the  residue  to  go  to  the 
original  holders.  He  stuck  to  this  in  the  face  of 
statements  of  its  impracticability  which  he  made  no 
attempt  to  refute.  Boudinot,  of  New  Jersey,  pointed 
out  that  great  quantities  of  certificates  of  indebted 
ness  had  been  originally  issued  to  government  clerks 
who  distributed  them  among  those  who  furnished 
supplies  to  the  government,  or  who  performed  ser 
vices  entitling  them  to  pay.  He  mentioned  that  he 
himself  appeared  on  the  record  as  original  holder 
in  cases  wherein  he  had  really  acted  for  his  neigh 
bors,  to  relieve  them  of  the  trouble  of  personal  ap 
pearance.  Madison's  proposal  would  therefore  in 
vest  him  with  a  legal  title  to  property  which  actually 
belonged  to  others.  Madison  answered  that  "all 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED    239 

that  he  wished  was  that  the  claims  of  the  original 
holders,  not  less  than  those  of  the  actual  holders, 
should  be  fairly  examined  and  justly  decided/' 
and  there  he  rested,  avoiding  particulars.  He  was, 
however,  somewhat  embarrassed  by  a  home  thrust 
from  Benson,  of  New  York,  who  put  the  question 
whether  if  Madison  had  sold  a  certificate  he  would 
now  claim  part  of  the  value  he  had  transferred.  "I 
ask,"  said  Benson,  "whether  he  would  take  ad 
vantage  of  the  law  against  me."  Madison  would 
not  give  a  direct  answer,  but  said  that  everything 
would  depend  upon  the  cirumstances  of  any  par 
ticular  case,  and  that  circumstances  were  conceiva 
ble  in  which  the  most  tender  conscience  need  not 
refrain  from  taking  the  benefit  of  what  the  Govern 
ment  had  determined. 

The  debate  on  Madison's  proposal  of  ch'scrimina- 
tion  occupied  eleven  days,  during  which  it  steadily 
lost  ground,  and  when  the  issue  came  to  a  vote  it 
was  defeated  in  the  House  by  the  crushing  vote  of 
thirty-six  to  thirteen.  The  struggle  now  shifted 
to  the  assumption  of  State  debts.  The  character  of 
the  debate  shows  how  much  the  discussion  suffered 
from  the  lack  of  the  presence  of  the  Secretary  to 
state  his  case  and  define  the  issue.  There  is  little 
evidence  that  the  argument  made  in  his  report  re 
ceived  any  real  consideration.  The  debate  dragged 
along,  including  much  that  was  fictitious  or  irrel- 


240  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

evant,  and  it  is  plain  that  the  usual  point  of 
view  was  merely  that  of  local  interest.  Members 
would  figure  how  much  their  States  would  have  to 
pay  as  their  share  of  the  debt,  and  upon  that  con 
sideration  alone  would  reach  conclusions  as  to  how 
the  States  individually  stood  to  win  or  lose  by  the 
transaction,  as  if  they  were  so  many  different  coun 
tries  and  not  members  of  the  same  nation.  Liver- 
more,  of  New  Hampshire,  a  State  which  had  the 
luck  to  lie  outside  the  field  of  actual  warfare,  de 
clared:  "I  conceive  that  the  debt  of  South  Carolina, 
or  Massachusetts,  or  an  individual,  has  nothing  to 
do  with  our  deliberations.  If  they  have  involved 
themselves  in  debt,  it  is  their  misfortune,  and  they 
must  extricate  themselves  as  well  as  they  can." 
Stone,  of  Maryland,  another  State  that  lay  outside 
the  track  of  war,  admonished  the  war-debt  States 
that  they  should  "nobly  bear  the  burthens"  of 
debts  which  had  been  contracted  in  military  efforts 
that  were  for  the  advantage  of  all  the  States.  Such 
selfish  particularism  received  the  strong  champion 
ship  of  Madison,  who  had  on  this  issue  made  a 
complete  change  of  front  in  deference  to  the  opposi 
tion  to  assumption  which  had  been  developed  in 
Virginia,  on  the  supposition  that  it  meant  a  heavy 
bill  for  that  large  State  to  pay  on  account  of  other 
States.  The  combination  against  assumption  was 
too  strong  for  its  advocates  to  overcome,  and  on 


RECOMMENDATIONS  DEFEATED    241 

April  12,  1790,  the  bill  was  defeated  outright  in 
the  House,  thirty-one  to  twenty-one.  It  was  a 
deadly  blow  to  Hamilton's  plans,  as  the  assumption 
of  the  State  debts  by  the  nation  was  an  essential 
feature  of  his  plans  for  establishing  national  union. 


CHAPTER  XVII 
A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN 

THE  defeat  of  the  Assumption  Bill  did  not  discour 
age  Hamilton.  It  was  only  one  more  of  the  many 
rebuffs  and  disappointments  he  had  met  with  in  his 
years  of  effort  to  establish  national  authority.  He 
had  recently  dealt  with  a  more  difficult  situation  in 
the  New  York  Convention  than  that  which  now  con 
fronted  him  in  Congress,  and  he  now  energetically 
applied  himself  to  that  situation,  using  pressure  of 
interest  to  move  those  who  could  not  be  stirred  by 
reason.  His  own  literary  remains  furnish  no  details 
of  his  activity  at  this  period;  and  such  glimpses  as 
one  gets  of  it  in  the  records  are  afforded  mainly 
through  notice  of  it  taken  by  his  opponents. 

It  is  plain  that  the  leverage  which  Hamilton  now 
brought  to  bear  was  the  intense  interest  felt  in  Con 
gress  over  the  site  of  the  national  capital.  With 
many  members  that  appears  to  have  been  a  con 
sideration  above  everything  else  in  importance. 
It  became  the  prominent  topic  in  Madison's  corre 
spondence  as  soon  as  the  Constitution  was  adopted. 
Legislative  bargaining  about  it  started  as  soon  as 
Congress  met.  On  April  26,  1789;  before  Wash 
ington  had  been  installed  in  office,  Maclay  noted  a 

242 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  243 

meeting  "to  concert  some  measures  for  the  removal 
of  Congress."  Thereafter  notices  of  attempted 
bargains  frequently  appear  in  his  diary,  and  after 
the  defeat  of  the  Assumption  Bill  there  are  refer 
ences  to  Hamilton's  participation.  An  entry  of 
June  14,  1790,  ascribes  to  Robert  Morris  the  state 
ment  that  "Hamilton  said  he  wanted  one  vote  in 
the  Senate  and  five  in  the  House  of  Representatives; 
that  he  was  willing  and  would  agree  to  place  the 
permanent  residence  of  Congress  at  Germantown  or 
Falls  of  the  Delaware  [Trenton],  if  he  (Morris)  would 
procure  him  those  votes. "  But  the  Pennsylvania 
delegation  was  hopelessly  divided  between  the  Dela 
ware  and  the  Susquehanna  claimants  for  the  site, 
and  Hamilton  had  to  seek  elsewhere  for  the  votes 
he  needed.  He  eventually  effected  the  winning 
combination  through  support  drawn  from  what  at 
the  start  seemed  the  least  promising  quarter — the 
Virginia  delegation — and,  what  seems  stranger  still, 
in  view  of  their  subsequent  relations,  he  did  this  by 
the  aid  of  Thomas  Jefferson. 

While  the  movement  was  going  on  that  resulted 
in  the  meeting  of  the  Philadelphia  convention  Jef 
ferson  was  in  France,  where  he  was  left  in  a  pre 
carious  situation  by  the  bankruptcy  of  the  Conti 
nental  Congress.  In  these  circumstances  he  formed 
such  strong  national  principles  that  he  argued  that 
"when  any  one  State  in  the  American  union  re 
fuses  obedience  to  the  Confederation  by  which  they 


244  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

have  bound  themselves,  the  rest  have  a  natural 
right  to  compel  them  to  obedience."  *  He  went  so 
far  as  to  say:  "There  never  will  be  money  in  the 
treasury  till  the  Confederacy  shows  its  teeth.  The 
States  must  see  the  rod;  perhaps  it  must  be  felt  by 
some  one  of  them."  2  When  he  took  the  post  of 
Secretary  of  State  under  Washington  he  began 
his  duties  with  high  views  of  authority.  Maclay 
describes  a  visit  of  Jefferson  to  the  Senate  chamber 
to  advise  a  lump  appropriation  for  the  diplomatic 
service  to  be  apportioned  according  to  the  discre 
tion  of  the  President.  From  Jefferson's  corre 
spondence  at  the  time  of  the  defeat  of  the  Assump 
tion  Bill,  it  appears  that  he  feared  that  the  effect 
would  be  disastrous.  He  wrote  to  James  Monroe, 
June  20,  1790,  that,  unless  the  measures  of  the  Ad 
ministration  were  adopted,  "our  credit  will  burst 
and  vanish,  and  the  States  separate  to  take  care 
everyone  of  itself."  The  South  Carolina  delegation 
had  given  plain  notice  that  that  was  what  that 
State  would  have  to  do  if  the  war  debt  it  had  con 
tracted  was  not  assumed  by  the  general  government. 
Unless  this  were  done  all  the  war-ravaged  States 
would  lose  by  staying  in  the  Union,  since  that  would 
withdraw  from  their  control  revenue  resources  which 
they  would  otherwise  possess.  Jefferson  saw  that, 
if  States  loaded  with  debt  by  the  war  were  left  in 

1  Jefferson  to  De  Meusnier,  January  24,  1786. 
8  Jefferson  to  Monroe,  August  11,  1786. 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  245 

the  lurch  to  save  themselves  as  best  they  could, 
the  Union  would  promptly  break  up.  Hamilton 
availed  himself  of  these  anxieties  to  make  a  bargain 
by  which  Jefferson  was  to  get  enough  Southern  votes 
to  carry  assumption  in  return  for  enough  votes  from 
Hamilton's  adherents  to  select  the  Potomac  site  for 
the  national  capital.  Jefferson  himself  may  have 
proposed  the  deal.  He  certainly  outlined  its  fea 
tures  in  his  letter  to  Monroe  and  he  personally  at 
tended  to  the  actual  negotiation.  The  terms  were 
settled  at  a  dinner  given  by  Jefferson  to  which  he 
invited  Madison  and  Hamilton.  As  a  sop  to  the 
Pennsylvania  delegation  it  was  decided  that  the 
national  capital  should  be  removed  to  Philadelphia 
for  a  stay  of  ten  years,  after  which  it  should  be  on 
the  eastern  side  of  the  Potomac  River  in  a  district 
ten  miles  square  to  be  selected  by  the  President 
within  certain  bounds.  In  consideration  of  Hamil 
ton's  support  of  this  arrangement  Jefferson  and 
Madison  agreed  to  facilitate  the  passage  of  the 
Assumption  Bill.  The  Virginians  got  the  goods 
first,  but  the  bargain  was  loyally  fulfilled  on  both 
sides.  The  Residence  Act  was  approved  July  16, 
1790;  the  funding  and  assumption  measures,  now 
combined  in  one  bill,  became  law  on  August  4.  It 
was  a  narrower  and  rigider  scheme  than  was  first 
proposed  by  Hamilton.  The  changes  made  did  not 
improve  the  measure,  but  Hamilton  had  to  put  up 
with  them  on  the  principle  that  half  a  loaf  is  better 


246  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

than  no  bread.  Although  a  party  to  the  bargain, 
Madison  could  not  himself  reverse  his  attitude  on 
the  issue,  and  his  vote  was  recorded  against  assump 
tion,  but  matters  were  arranged  so  that  two  Vir 
ginia  members  from  Potomac  districts  changed 
their  votes,  enough  to  carry  assumption  by  thirty- 
two  ayes  to  twenty-nine  nays. 

The  compromise  upon  the  Assumption  Bill  not 
only  ended  a  crisis  which  threatened  to  wreck  na 
tional  authority  at  the  outset,  but  it  also  produced 
a  receptive  disposition  in  Congress  of  which  Hamil 
ton  availed  himself  for  a  series  of  great  measures. 
On  December  14,  1790,  he  offered  his  plan  for  es 
tablishing  a  national  bank,  submitted  as  a  further 
compliance  with  the  order  of  the  House  requiring 
him  to  report  plans  for  restoring  the  public  credit. 
Here  again  he  had  to  combat  prejudices,  which  he 
instanced  and  considered  in  detail,  such  as  that  banks 
"serve  to  increase  usury,  tend  to  prevent  other 
kinds  of  lending,  furnish  temptations  to  overtrading, 
afford  aid  to  ignorant  adventurers  who  disturb  the 
natural  and  beneficial  course  of  trade,  give  to  bank 
rupt  and  fraudulent  traders  a  fictitious  credit  which 
enables  them  to  maintain  false  appearances  and  to 
extend  their  impositions,  and  that  they  have  a 
tendency  to  banish  gold  and  silver  from  the  coun 
try."  All  these  accusations  are  examined  with  a 
thoroughness  that  makes  the  report  a  masterly 
treatise  upon  the  functions  of  banks.  Such  was  the 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  247 

effect  of  the  report  that  the  bill  incorporating  the 
Bank  of  the  United  States  had  rather  an  easy  pas 
sage  through  Congress.  It  originated  in  the  Senate 
and  was  reported  to  the  House  from  the  committee 
of  the  whole,  without  amendment.  But  when  the 
question  was  on  the  passage  of  the  bill  Madison 
opposed  it  on  the  ground  that  the  Constitution  did 
not  expressly  authorize  Congress  to  grant  charters, 
and  that  to  assume  such  power  by  implication  would 
"go  to  the  subversion  of  every  power  whatever  in 
the  several  States."  Madison's  argument  had  so 
little  effect  that  the  report  preserved  in  the  Annals 
of  Congress  notes  that  "the  House  discovering  an 
impatience  to  have  the  main  question  put,"  the  yeas 
and  nays  were  then  taken  and  the  vote  was  thirty- 
nine  to  twenty  in  favor  of  the  bill. 

When  the  act  reached  Washington  for  his  approval 
both  the  Virginia  members  of  the  Cabinet — Ran 
dolph,  the  Attorney-General,  and  Jefferson,  the  Sec 
retary  of  State — took  Madison's  position  that  the 
Constitution  did  not  warrant  such  an  enactment. 
Washington  seems  to  have  been  moved  by  this  ad 
vice,  for  he  requested  Madison  to  prepare  a  veto 
message  for  him.  But  on  February  16,  while  Madi 
son  was  at  work  upon  it,  Washington  referred  the 
case  to  Hamilton  with  the  request  that  he  would 
consider  the  objections  raised  and  give  his  opinion 
upon  them.  Madison  handed  in  his  draft  of  a  veto 
message  on  the  21st.  On  the  23d  Hamilton  submit- 


248  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ted  his  famous  "Opinion  as  to  the  Constitutionality 
of  the  Bank  of  the  United  States/'  prepared  in  just 
one  week.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  there  is  no  other 
instance  in  which  a  great  monument  of  jurisprudence 
was  so  rapidly  erected.  In  his  letter  of  transmission 
Hamilton  remarked  that  the  opinion  had  "  occupied 
him  the  greatest  part  of  last  night/'  But  the  opin 
ion  itself  bears  no  mark  of  haste.  Terse  in  diction 
and  concise  in  method,  it  is  so  complete  in  its  analysis 
that  it  is  over  11,000  words  in  length,  sustained  in 
power,  and  solid  in  argument  throughout.  In  it 
Hamilton  developed  the  doctrine  of  implied  powers, 
which  was  later  adopted  by  the  Supreme  Court 
and  is  now  generally  admitted  to  be  an  essential 
incident  of  genuine  authority.  This  doctrine  was 
thus  stated  by  Hamilton,  the  italics  being  his  own: 

Now  it  appears  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  that 
this  general  principle  is  inherent  in  the  very  definition  of 
government,  and  essential  to  every  step  of  the  progress  to 
be  made  by  that  of  the  United  States,  namely :  That  every 
power  vested  in  a  government  is  in  its  nature  sovereign, 
and  includes,  by  force  of  the  term,  a  right  to  employ  all  the 
means  requisite  and  fairly  applicable  to  the  attainment 
of  the  ends  of  such  power,  and  which  are  not  precluded 
by  restrictions  and  exceptions  specified  in  the  Constitu 
tion,  or  not  immoral,  or  not  contrary  to  the  essential  ends 
of  political  society. 

He  proceeded  to  support  this  proposition  by  copi 
ous  instances,  largely  of  a  practical  nature,  showing 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  249 

that  without  such  a  principle  of  conduct  "the  United 
States  would  furnish  the  singular  spectacle  of  a 
political  society  without  sovereignty,  or  of  a  people 
governed,  without  government."  The  cogency  of 
Hamilton's  argument  was  eventually  shown  by  the 
experience  of  his  principal  opponents — Jefferson 
and  Madison — during  their  terms  as  President. 
Stress  of  practical  necessity  forced  them  to  Hamil 
ton's  position  after  they  had  caused  immense  mis 
chief  to  their  country  as  well  as  great  annoyance  to 
themselves  by  their  opposition  to  it. 

Hamilton's  argument  was  so  convincing  to  Wash 
ington,  after  careful  examination,  that  he  rejected 
the  advice  of  Randolph,  Jefferson,  and  Madison, 
and  signed  the  bill.  The  principles  laid  down  by 
Hamilton  thereafter  guided  Washington's  admin 
istration.  Although  Washington  was  still  pressed 
with  strict-construction  arguments  he  ceased  to  pay 
much  attention  to  them.  When  Jefferson  argued  at 
a  cabinet  meeting  that  there  was  no  constitutional 
authority  for  establishing  a  military  academy,  Wash 
ington  cut  short  the  discussion  by  saying  that  he 
would  recommend  such  action  to  Congress  and  "let 
them  decide  for  themselves  whether  the  Constitu 
tion  authorized  it  or  not." 

On  January  28,  1791,  Hamilton  sent  to  the  House 
a  report  on  the  establishment  of  a  mint.  He  began 
with  a  powerful  statement  of  the  variety  and  dis 
order  of  the  existing  circulating  medium,  a  medley 


250  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

of  foreign  coins  having  no  fixed  and  uniform  stand 
ard  of  value.     He  observed : 

In  order  to  a  right  judgment  of  what  ought  to  be  done, 
the  following  particulars  require  to  be  discussed: 

1st.  What  ought  to  be  the  nature  of  the  money  unit  of 
the  United  States? 

2d.  What  the  proportion  between  gold  and  silver,  if 
coins  of  both  metals  are  to  be  established? 

3d.  What  the  proportion  and  composition  of  alloy  in 
each  kind  ? 

4th.  Whether  the  expense  of  coinage  shall  be  defrayed 
by  the  Government,  or  out  of  the  material  itself? 

5th.  What  shall  be  the  number,  denominations,  sizes, 
and  devices  of  the  coins  ? 

6th.  Whether  foreign  coins  shall  be  permitted  to  be 
current  or  not;  if  the  former,  at  what  rate,  and  for  what 
period. 

As  might  be  expected  from  such  an  exhaustive 
classification,  the  report  is  a  complete  dissertation 
upon  coinage  problems.  It  is  a  striking  example  of 
Hamilton's  habit  of  going  to  the  bottom  of  every 
subject  before  stating  his  conclusions,  for  he  did  not 
have  any  great  innovation  to  recommend.  His 
plan  virtually  took  the  situation  as  he  found  it  and 
made  the  best  of  it.  The  English  pound,  although 
still  nominally  the  unit  of  account,  had  been  prac 
tically  superseded  by  the  Spanish  dollar,  but  coins 
of  that  denomination  had  no  settled  or  standard 
value.  Hamilton  took  the  prevailing  rating  of  the 
dollar  as  the  actual  money  unit,  disregarding  the 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  251 

old  value  of  the  dollar  as  fixed  by  Spanish  law,  with 
the  express  purpose  of  keeping  unimpaired  existing 
contracts  based  upon  the  current  rating  of  the  dollar. 
So  likewise  he  retained  both  gold  and  silver  as  full 
legal  tender  and  fixed  a  ratio  corresponding  to  the 
commercial  ratio.  However,  he  remarked,  with  a 
prescience  since  abundantly  attested  by  events: 
"As  long  as  gold  either  from  its  intrinsic  superiority 
as  a  metal,  from  its  greater  rarity,  or  from  the  prej 
udices  of  mankind,  retains  so  considerable  a  pre 
eminence  in  value  over  silver,  as  it  has  hitherto  had, 
a  natural  consequence  of  this  seems  to  be  that  its 
condition  will  be  more  stationary.  The  revolutions, 
therefore,  which  may  take  place  in  the  comparative 
value  of  gold  and  silver,  will  be  changes  in  the  state 
of  the  latter,  rather  than  in  that  of  the  former." 

As  regards  the  scale  of  value  in  the  coinage,  he 
recommended  the  decimal  system,  which  in  fact  had 
been  adopted  by  the  Continental  Congress  on  August 
8,  1786,  although  it  had  not  gone  into  effect.  Jef 
ferson  was  strongly  in  favor  of  this  system,  which 
indeed  met  with  quite  general  acceptance.  As  to 
devices  upon  the  coins,  Hamilton  contented  himself 
with  remarking  that  they  "are  far  from  being  mat 
ters  of  indifference,  as  they  may  be  made  the  ve 
hicles  of  useful  impressions."  He  did  not  make  any 
particular  recommendations  under  this  head  in  his 
report,  but  the  bill  as  passed  by  the  Senate  contained 
a  provision  that  coins  should  bear  a  representation 


252  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

of  the  head  of  the  President  during  whose  adminis 
tration  they  were  issued,  and  it  is  presumable  that 
this  was  in  accord  with  Hamilton's  idea.  This  pro 
vision  was  energetically  attacked  in  the  House  as  a 
servile  imitation  of  the  practice  of  monarchies.  It 
was  in  vain  pointed  out  that  the  House  amendment 
striking  out  this  instruction  "left  the  matter  entirely 
to  the  judgment  of  the  artist,  who  may  form  such  an 
emblem  as  suits  his  fancy."  The  amendment  was 
carried  by  twenty-six  yeas  to  twenty-two  nays, 
Madison  voting  in  the  affirmative,  and,  although  the 
Senate  was  disposed  to  insist  upon  the  clause,  it 
finally  had  to  submit  to  the  will  of  the  House.  The 
result  is  the  queer,  totemistic  character  of  the  de 
signs  of  American  coinage.  The  heads  of  Presidents 
and  other  public  men  now  appear  in  profusion  upon 
the  note  issues  of  the  United  States,  but  not  according 
to  any  settled  plan,  and  Hamilton's  sensible  idea  of 
making  the  devices  " vehicles  of  useful  impressions" 
has  yet  to  be  utilized.  It  cannot  be  doubted  that 
devices  corresponding  to  Presidential  terms  of  office 
would  be  a  valuable  source  of  historical  instruction, 
whereas  the  existing  system  is  one  of  sheer  caprice. 

On  December  5,  1791,  Hamilton  sent  to  the 
House  his  famous  report  on  manufactures,  references 
to  which  have  been  continual  in  the  tariff  contro 
versies  that  form  so  great  a  part  of  the  political  his 
tory  of  the  United  States.  It  is  generally  claimed 
to  be  a  vindication  of  the  protective  policy,  and  so 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  253 

it  is,  in  consideration  of  the  actual  circumstances  in 
which  the  United  States  was  placed,  but  at  the  same 
time  no  stronger  statement  can  be  found  of  the 
argument  in  favor  of  free  trade  than  that  which 
the  report  presents  at  the  outset.  Hamilton  re 
marked  that  the  opponents  of  protection  might  rea 
son  as  follows : 

To  endeavor,  by  the  extraordinary  patronage  of  gov 
ernment,  to  accelerate  the  growth  of  manufactures,  is,  in 
fact,  to  endeavor,  by  force  and  art,  to  transfer  the  natural 
current  of  industry  from  a  more  to  a  less  beneficial  chan 
nel.  Whatever  has  such  a  tendency,  must  necessarily  be 
unwise;  indeed,  it  can  hardly  ever  be  wise  in  a  govern 
ment  to  attempt  to  give  a  direction  to  the  industry  of  its 
citizens.  This,  under  the  quicksighted  guidance  of  pri 
vate  interest,  will,  if  left  to  itself,  infallibly  find  its  own 
way  to  the  most  profitable  employment;  and  it  is  by  such 
employment  that  the  public  prosperity  will  be  most  effec 
tually  promoted.  To  leave  industry  to  itself,  therefore, 
is  in  almost  every  case,  the  soundest  as  well  as  the  simplest 
policy.  ...  If,  contrary  to  the  natural  course  of  things, 
an  unseasonable  and  premature  spring  can  be  given  to 
certain  fabrics,  by  heavy  duties,  prohibitions,  bounties, 
or  by  other  forced  expedients,  this  will  be  to  sacrifice  the 
interests  of  the  community  to  those  of  particular  classes. 
Besides  the  misdirection  of  labor,  a  virtual  monopoly  will 
be  given  to  the  persons  employed  on  such  fabrics;  and  an 
enhancement  of  price,  the  inevitable  consequence  of  every 
monopoly,  must  be  defrayed  at  the  expense  of  the  other 
parts  of  the  society.  It  is  far  preferable,  that  those  per 
sons  should  be  engaged  in  the  cultivation  of  the  earth, 
and  that  we  should  procure,  in  exchange  for  its  produc- 


254  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

tions,  the  commodities  with  which  foreigners  are  able  to 
supply  us  in  greater  perfection,  and  upon  better  terms. 

Hamilton  expressed  much  sympathy  with  this 
opinion.  He  observed:  "If  the  system  of  perfect 
liberty  to  industry  and  commerce  were  the  prevail 
ing  system  of  nations,  the  arguments  which  dissuade 
a  country,  in  the  predicament  of  the  United  States, 
from  the  zealous  pursuit  of  manufactures,  would 
doubtless  have  great  force.  It  will  not  be  affirmed 
that  they  might  not  be  permitted,  with  few  excep 
tions,  to  serve  as  a  rule  of  national  conduct.  In 
such  a  state  of  things,  each  country  would  have  the 
full  benefit  of  its  peculiar  advantages  to  compensate 
for  its  deficiencies  or  disadvantages.  If  one  nation 
were  in  a  condition  to  supply  manufactured  articles 
on  better  terms  than  another,  that  other  might  find 
an  abundant  indemnification  in  a  superior  capacity 
to  furnish  the  produce  of  the  soil.  And  a  free  ex 
change,  mutually  beneficial,  of  the  commodities 
which  each  was  able  to  supply,  on  the  best  terms, 
might  be  carried  on  between  them,  supporting  in 
full  vigor  the  industry  of  each." 

But  no  such  ideal  situation  existed.  "The  regu 
lations  of  several  countries,  with  which  we  have  the 
most  extensive  intercourse,  throw  serious  obstruc 
tions  in  the  way  of  the  principal  staples  of  the  United 
States.  .  .  .  Remarks  of  this  kind  are  not  made  in 
the  spirit  of  complaint.  It  is  for  the  nations  whose 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  255 

regulations  are  alluded  to,  to  judge  for  themselves, 
whether  by  aiming  at  too  much  they  do  not  lose 
more  than  they  gain.  It  is  for  the  United  States 
to  consider  by  what  means  they  can  render  them 
selves  least  dependent  on  the  combinations,  right 
or  wrong,  of  foreign  policy.  ...  If  Europe  will 
not  take  from  us  the  products  of  our  soil,  upon  terms 
consistent  with  our  interest,  the  natural  remedy  is 
to  contract,  as  fast  as  possible,  our  wants  of  her." 

Having  thus  made  clear  the  grounds  of  the  na 
tional  policy  he  recommended,  he  proceeded  to  dis 
cuss  its  economic  basis.  He  first  considered  the 
sources  of  the  wealth  of  nations,  the  effects  of  diver 
sification  of  industry,  and  the  social  consequences; 
next  came  a  detailed  examination  of  the  resources 
of  the  United  States,  and  the  particular  means  by 
which  they  might  be  developed.  He  urged:  "Not 
only  the  wealth,  but  the  independence  and  security 
of  a  country,  appear  to  be  materially  connected  with 
the  prosperity  of  manufactures.  Every  nation,  with 
a  view  to  those  great  objects,  ought  to  endeavor  to 
possess  within  itself  all  the  essentials  of  national 
supply.  These  comprise  the  means  of  subsistence, 
habitation,  clothing,  and  defence.  The  possession 
of  these  is  necessary  to  the  perfection  of  the  body 
politic;  to  the  safety  as  well  as  to  the  welfare  of  the 
society.  The  want  of  either  is  the  want  of  an  im 
portant  organ  of  political  life  and  motion ;  and  in  the 
various  crises  which  await  a  state,  it  must  severely 


256  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

feel  the  effects  of  any  such  deficiency."  History 
has  given  impressive  testimony  to  the  justice  of  these 
observations. 

The  report,  although  extensive  in  its  scope,  has 
such  conciseness  and  unity  that  it  is  impossible  to 
offer  any  summary  that  can  do  it  justice.  In  it 
Hamilton's  genius  shines  with  a  brilliancy  that 
places  it  alongside  the  report  on  the  public  credit 
in  greatness  of  statesmanship.  If  it  had  appeared 
as  a  scholastic  treatise  instead  of  as  a  public  docu 
ment,  it  would  figure  as  a  classic  of  political  economy, 
produced  at  a  time  when  that  science  was  almost 
inchoate.  Its  foundations  had  indeed  been  securely 
laid  by  Adam  Smith,  the  first  edition  of  whose 
Wealth  of  Nations  appeared  in  1776,  but  its  influence 
was  not  manifested  in  English  politics  until  1792, 
when  Pitt  avowed  his  acceptance  of  its  principles. 
Hamilton  appreciated  the  work  from  the  first,  and 
he  is  known  to  have  written  an  extended  commen 
tary  upon  it  some  time  in  1783,  during  his  first 
term  as  a  member  of  the  Continental  Congress, 
but  this  is  among  the. many  Hamilton  papers  that 
have  been  lost.  In  one  place  in  the  report  on  manu 
factures  he  quoted  a  passage  from  Adam  Smith 
on  the  economic  reactions  of  transportation  facilities. 
But  there  is  no  resemblance  between  the  two  works 
in  style  and  method.  Hamilton  moved  on  his  own 
lines  and  his  report  is  the  product  of  his  own  thought. 
In  some  measure  it  might  even  be  described  as  a 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  257 

rejoinder  to  Smith,  the  weight  of  whose  argument, 
as  is  well  known,  was  in  favor  of  free  trade.  This 
Hamilton  doubtless  had  in  mind  when  he  observed: 
"Most  general  theories,  however,  admit  of  numerous 
exceptions,  and  there  are  few,  if  any,  of  the  political 
kind,  which  do  not  blend  a  considerable  portion  of 
error  with  the  truths  they  inculcate."  Smith  admit 
ted  that  particular  considerations  might  traverse  the 
general  principles  he  advocated,  as,  for  instance,  after 
condemning  the  Navigation  Act  as  adverse  to  the 
national  prosperity,  he  abruptly  remarked:  "As  de 
fence,  however,  is  of  much  more  importance  than 
opulence,  the  act  of  navigation  is,  perhaps,  the  wis 
est  of  all  the  commercial  regulations  of  England." 
This  consideration  which  Smith  dismisses  with  curt 
mention  is  drawn  out  at  length  with  great  power  in 
Hamilton's  report,  not  merely  as  concerns  naviga 
tion,  but  in  respect  of  the  whole  subject  of  national 
policy.  But  at  the  same  time  it  should  be  ob 
served  that  Hamilton's  dissent  from  the  principles 
of  free  trade  was  not  based  upon  rejection  of  them 
in  the  abstract.  His  point  was  that  the  statesman 
has  to  deal  with  things  as  they  are  and  not  as  they 
ought  to  be.  His  protective  policy  is  connected 
with  particular  needs  and  circumstances,  and  is 
hence  no  hard-and-fast  rule,  but  is  subject  to  modi 
fication  as  needs  and  circumstances  change. 

Although  the  policy  recommended  in  this  report 
has  since  become  a  perennial  source  of  controversy 


258  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

in  American  politics,  it  did  not  excite  active  oppo 
sition  when  it  was  presented.  Indeed,  that  policy 
had  already  been  adopted  by  Congress,  although 
more  as  a  result  of  casual  drift  than  of  deliberate 
purpose.  Before  Hamilton  took  office  a  tariff  act 
had  been  passed,  with  a  preamble  that  included 
"the  encouragement  and  protection  of  manufac 
tures"  in  its  statement  of  purpose.  The  enactment 
was  prompted  by  the  immediate  need  of  revenue, 
but  Madison,  who  had  charge  of  the  bill,  admitted 
amendments  of  an  avowedly  protectionist  character. 
The  series  of  great  state  papers  that  have  been 
described  were  all  transmitted  to  the  First  Congress, 
with  the  exception  of  the  report  on  manufactures, 
which  was  sent  in  at  the  opening  of  the  first  session 
of  the  Second  Congress.  The  measures  devised 
by  Hamilton  established  the  public  credit  upon  such 
solid  foundations  that  it  was  able  to  sustain  shocks 
from  incompetent  management  after  his  retirement 
that  would  otherwise  have  been  fatal.  There  is 
no  greater  illustration  of  the  proverb  that  republics 
are  always  ungrateful  than  the  return  made  to  him 
for  his  splendid  services.  He  was  subjected  to  fero 
cious  persecution,  pursued  with  untiring  malignity, 
and  every  art  of  calumny  was  employed  to  load  his 
name  with  obloquy,  with  such  success  as  still  to 
give  color  to  our  political  literature.  He  met  every 
attack  with  dauntless  courage  and  triumphant  en 
ergy,  and  he  left  the  public  service  not  because  he 


A  FATEFUL  BARGAIN  259 

was  overcome  but  because  he  was  starved  out.  It  is 
impossible  to  find  in  all  history  any  other  statesman 
who  accomplished  so  much  with  such  small  means, 
and  who  received  so  slight  a  reward  for  his  labors. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN 

IMMEDIATELY  after  their  defeat  on  the  Bank  Bill, 
Madison  and  Jefferson  took  steps  to  provide  them 
selves  with  a  newspaper  organ.  Hamilton's  con 
clusive  opinion  was  transmitted,  February  23,  1791. 
On  the  28th  Jefferson  wrote  to  Philip  Freneau  offer 
ing  him  a  clerkship  in  the  State  Department,  with 
the  asurance  that  "it  requires  no  other  qualification 
than  a  moderate  knowledge  of  the  French/'  and  that 
"should  anything  better  turn  up"  in  the  department 
that  "might  suit7'  Freneau,  he  "should  be  very- 
happy  to  bestow  it  so  well."  At  that  time  Freneau 
was  arranging  to  start  a  newspaper  in  New  Jersey. 
Madison  went  to  see  him  and  induced  him  to  set 
up  his  newspaper  in  Philadelphia.  Writing  to  Jef 
ferson,  May  1,  1791,  Madison  said:  "I  have  seen 
Freneau  and  given  him  a  line  to  you.  He  sets  out 
for  Philadelphia  today  or  tomorrow."  The  re 
sult  of  the  conferences  which  took  place  was  that 
Freneau  accepted  the  clerkship  and  made  arrange 
ments  by  which  his  newspaper  was  established  in 
Philadelphia  in  time  for  the  next  session  of  Congress. 
The  first  number  of  the  National  Gazette  appeared 
on  October  31,  1791.  Attacks  upon  the  Administra- 

260 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    261 

tion  began  in  it  December  8,  1791,  and  continued 
thereafter  until  October,  1793,  when  the  publica 
tion  was  discontinued  soon  after  Jefferson  left  the 
Cabinet.  Madison  was  a  contributor  almost  from 
the  start,  furnishing  articles  on  such  topics  as  "Con 
solidation,"  "Money,"  "Government,"  "Charters," 
"Parties,"  "British  Government,"  etc.  They  were 
calm  in  tone  and  decorous  in  language,  but  were 
calculated  to  produce  vague  impressions  that  public 
affairs  were  going  wrong  and  that  corrective  action 
was  desirable. 

In  addition  to  retaining  Freneau's  services,  it 
appears  that  efforts  were  also  made  to  get  the  aid  of 
Thomas  Paine.  Writing  to  Jefferson,  July  13,  1791, 
Madison  said:  "I  wish  you  success  with  all  my  heart 
in  your  efforts  for  Paine.  Besides  the  advantage 
to  him  which  he  deserves,  an  appointment  for  him, 
at  this  moment,  would  do  good  in  various  ways." 
About  this  time  Paine  produced  his  "Rights  of 
Man,"  with  the  publication  of  which  Jefferson  was 
connected  in  a  way  which  he  did  not  expect  and  which 
considerably  embarrassed  him.  An  edition  of  Paine's 
pamphlet  appeared  with  a  letter  of  approval  from 
Jefferson,  who  wrote  at  once  to  Washington  explain 
ing  that  it  had  been  meant  as  a  private  letter — 
"to  my  great  astonishment,  however,  the  printer 
had  prefixed  my  note  to  it,  without  having  given  me 
the  most  distant  hint  of  it."  Paine  did  not  get  an 
appointment,  and  the  affair  doubtless  had  much 


262  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

to  do  with  the  bitter  attacks  which  he  made  later 
upon  Washington. 

In  making  these  arrangements  Jefferson  and 
Madison  do  not  appear  at  the  outset  to  have  had 
any  distinct  plan  of  opposition  to  the  Administra 
tion,  but  simply  had  in  view  the  strengthening  of 
their  political  influence.  The  principal  mark  of 
their  censure  was  not  at  first  Hamilton,  but  was 
John  Adams,  the  Vice-President,  who  had  been 
publishing  some  newspaper  articles  which  both 
Jefferson  and  Madison  characterized  as  an  attack 
upon  republican  principles.  Adams  figured  promi 
nently,  in  their  correspondence  in  the  summer  of 
1791,  as  the  propagator  of  political  heresies,  but  at 
this  time  there  was  no  unfriendly  mention  of  Hamil 
ton.  Both  Jefferson  and  Madison  seemed  to  be 
reluctant  to  make  an  issue  of  Hamilton's  financial 
policy,  for  they  had  been  a  party  to  it  through  the 
aid  they  gave  to  the  passage  of  assumption.  Their 
original  expectation  was  that  the  storm  it  had  raised 
would  soon  blow  over.  On  July  31,  1790,  Madison 
wrote  to  his  father  that,  although  he  had  voted 
against  assumption,  he  had  felt  "that  there  was 
serious  danger  of  a  very  unfavorable  issue  to  the 
session  from  a  contrary  decision,  and  considered 
it  as  now  incumbent  on  us  all  to  make  the  best  of 
what  was  done.  The  truth  is  that  in  a  pecuniary 
light,  the  assumption  is  no  longer  of  much  conse 
quence  to  Virginia,  the  sum  allotted  to  her  being 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    263 

about  her  proportion  of  the  whole,  rather  exceed 
ing  her  present  debt."  Jefferson's  correspondence 
shows  positive  favor  to  assumption.  He  wrote, 
June  27,  1790,  that  "a  rejection  of  the  measure 
.  .  .  will  be  something  very  like  a  dissolution  of  the 
government."  In  a  letter  of  July  4  he  remarked: 
"The  funding  business  being  once  out  of  the  way, 
I  hope  nothing  else  may  be  able  to  call  up  local 
principles."  On  July  25  he  wrote  that  "the  mea 
sure  was  so  vehemently  called  for  by  the  State  credi 
tors  in  some  parts  of  the  Union  that  it  seems  to  be 
one  of  those  cases  where  some  sacrifice  of  opinion 
is  necessary  for  the  sake  of  peace."  On  August 
4  he  wrote  that  the  struggle  over  assumption  "really 
threatened,  at  one  time,  a  separation  of  the  legisla 
ture  sine  die/'  and  he  remarked:  "It  is  not  foreseen 
that  anything  so  generative  of  dissension  can  arise 
again,  and  therefore  the  friends  of  the  government 
hope  that,  this  difficulty  once  surmounted  in  the 
States,  everything  will  work  well."  Writing  on 
November  26,  1790,  he  remarked  that  assumption 
"is  harped  on  by  many  to  mask  their  disaffection 
to  the  government  on  other  grounds,"  but  the  govern 
ment  was  "too  well  nerved  to  be  overawed  by  in 
dividual  opposition."  On  December  29,  1790,  he 
wrote  a  very  friendly  letter  to  Hamilton,  in  which  he 
expressed  the  hope  that  it  would  be  "taken  as  an 
advance  towards  unreserved  communications  for  re 
ciprocal  benefit." 


264  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Everything  indicates  that  for  upward  of  a  year 
after  the  passage  of  assumption  Madison  regarded 
it  with  indulgence,  while  Jefferson  took  credit  to 
himself  for  having  tided  the  government  over  a 
dangerous  crisis.  But  the  agitation  did  not  sub 
side.  In  December,  1790,  the  Virginia  Legislature 
adopted  fiery  resolutions  condemning  both  funding 
and  assumption.  These  resolutions  laid  down  the 
platform  on  which  both  Madison  and  Jefferson 
eventually  took  their  stand.  The  financial  policy 
of  the  government  was  censured  as  being  an  imita 
tion  of  British  policy,  and  as  a  violation  of  the  con 
stitutional  principle  "that  every  power  not  granted 
was  retained  by  the  States/'  The  resolutions  ap 
pealed  to  Congress  "to  revise  and  amend"  the  Public 
Credit  Act,  and  "repeal,  in  particular,  as  much  of  it 
as  relates  to  the  assumption  of  the  State  debts." 
Jefferson  was  then  loath  to  mount  that  platform, 
but  as  time  went  on  he  felt  increasing  anxiety  about 
foreign  policy,  and  he  became  ardently  desirous  of 
establishing  a  strong  party  interest  on  the  side  of  the 
French  revolutionary  government.  But  it  became 
manifest  that  among  the  means  he  could  employ  to 
push  his  party  interest  none  was  so  available  as  op 
position  to  the  Funding  and  Assumption  Act  which 
had  been  passed  through  his  own  agency.  Here  was 
a  pretty  hobble;  but  Jefferson  was  able  to  twist  out 
of  it.  He  excused  himself  on  the  ground  that  he 
did  not  know  what  he  was  doing;  that  he  "was  most 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    265 

ignorantly  and  innocently  made  to  hold  the  candle" 
to  Hamilton's  game.  The  discredit  to  his  intelli 
gence  he  relieved  by  saying  that  he  had  then  only 
recently  arrived  in  the  country,  "a  stranger  to  the 
ground,  a  stranger  to  the  actors  on  it." 

It  is  impossible  to  reconcile  this  statement  with 
the  statements  contained  in  Jefferson's  own  letters 
written  at  the  time  the  deal  on  the  Potomac  site 
was  pending;  and  furthermore,  with  Madison  at 
his  elbow,  he  could  not  have  suffered  from  lack 
of  information.  It  is  equally  impossible  to  recon 
cile  with  contemporary  evidence  the  account  which 
Jefferson  eventually  gave  of  the  effect  of  the  passage 
of  the  act.  As  soon  as  "the  form  in  which  the  bill 
would  finally  pass"  had  been  indicated,  wrote  Jef 
ferson,  "the  base  scramble  began.  Couriers  and 
relay  horses  by  land,  and  swift  sailing  pilot  boats  by 
sea,  were  flying  in  all  directions.  Active  partners 
and  agents  were  associated  and  employed  in  every 
State,  town  and  country  neighborhood,  and  this 
paper  was  bought  up  at  five  shillings  and  even  as  low 
as  two  shillings  in  the  pound,  before  the  holder  knew 
that  Congress  had  already  provided  for  its  redemp 
tion  at  par.  Immense  sums  were  thus  filched  from 
the  poor  and  ignorant." 

Inasmuch  as  Hamilton's  proposals  were  com 
municated  to  Congress  on  January  14,  1790;  and  the 
Assumption  Bill  did  not  become  law  until  August 
4,  nearly  seven  months  intervened  during  which 


266  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

knowledge  of  the  Government's  intention  could  be 
diffused  among  the  people.  Moreover,  there  was 
nothing  new  about  the  proposals.  They  had  been 
discussed  in  the  Continental  Congress,  and  as  a 
member  of  that  body  Madison  himself  had  argued 
in  favor  of  assumption.  The  formidable  opposition 
that  developed  in  Congress  certainly  gave  opportu 
nity  to  speculators  by  clouding  the  prospects  of 
government  paper,  but  purchasers  had  to  take  a 
risk,  since  the  passage  of  the  Public  Credit  Act  with 
the  assumption  feature  was  not  assured  until  Jef 
ferson  himself  put  his  shoulder  to  the  wheel.  Noth 
ing  like  the  scene  of  concerted  activity  described 
by  Jefferson,  writing  long  after  the  event,  can  be 
found  in  contemporary  documents.  There  are  ref 
erences  to  speculative  activity  in  Madison's  corre 
spondence  shortly  after  the  enactment,  but  nothing 
to  justify  the  picture  which  Jefferson  drew  after 
his  change  of  front.  The  psychology  of  the  situa 
tion  is,  however,  readily  intelligible.  It  frequently 
happens  that  when  shifts  of  interest  take  place, 
stirring  the  feelings  and  energizing  the  will,  the 
memory  is  impressed  into  the  service  of  the  new 
state  of  the  mind  and  thus  becomes  capable  of  rear 
ranging  past  events  in  conformity  with  present  views. 
Jefferson  and  his  adherents  now  made  use  of 
every  possible  means  to  break  Hamilton's  influence 
and  discredit  his  management.  Hamilton  was  at 
tacked  in  the  press,  harassed  in  Congress,  and  in- 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    267 

trigued  against  in  the  Cabinet.  Jefferson  himself 
has  recorded  how  he  labored  with  Washington  to 
inspire  distrust  of  Hamilton.  An  entry  in  The 
Anas  notes  that  the  writer  told  the  President  that 
"the  department  of  the  Treasury  possessed  already 
such  influence  as  to  swallow  up  the  whole  executive 
powers/'  and  that  the  popular  discontents  had 
"only  a  single  source/'  Hamilton's  policy. 

Hamilton  hit  back  vigorously,  and  to  this  is  due 
the  clearest  account  that  exists  of  the  politics  of  the 
time.  In  a  long  letter,  May  26,  1792,  to  Colonel 
Edward  Carrington,  of  Virginia,  Hamilton  gave  a 
detailed  account  of  the  political  situation  from  the 
beginning.  In  it  he  showed  that  originally  Madison 
and  himself  had  been  in  entire  agreement  on  fund 
ing  and  assumption,  and  that  he  had  been  slow  to 
believe  that  Madison  had  both  changed  his  views 
and  become  personally  unfriendly.  "It  was  not 
till  the  last  session,"  wrote  Hamilton,  "that  I  be 
came  unequivocally  convinced  of  the  following  truth : 
that  Mr.  Madison,  cooperating  with  Mr.  Jefferson, 
is  at  the  head  of  a  faction  decidedly  hostile  to  me 
and  my  administration;  and  actuated  by  views, 
in  my  judgment,  subversive  of  the  principles  of 
good  government  and  dangerous  to  the  union,  peace, 
and  happiness  of  the  country." 

Hamilton's  characteristic  habit  of  getting  to  the 
bottom  of  every  subject  he  discussed  is  strongly 
marked  in  this  letter.  He  made  no  use  of  the  easy 


268  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

retort  that  was  open  to  him  of  showing  that  Jeffer 
son  himself  was  a  participant  in  the  measures  now 
assailed,  but  he  traced  the  animosity  of  Jefferson 
and  Madison  to  its  source  in  their  characters  and 
circumstances,  and  he  gave  this  portrayal  of  the 
nature  of  their  proceedings : 

It  is  possible,  too,  (for  men  easily  heat  their  imagina 
tions  when  their  passions  are  heated)  that  they  have  by 
degrees  persuaded  themselves  of  what  they  may  have  at 
first  only  sported  to  influence  others,  namely,  that  there 
is  some  dreadful  combination  against  State  government 
and  republicanism;  which,  according  to  them,  are  con 
vertible  terms.  But  there  is  so  much  absurdity  in  this 
supposition,  that  the  admission  of  it  tends  to  apologize 
for  their  hearts  at  the  expense  of  their  heads.  Under 
the  influence  of  all  these  circumstances  the  attachment  to 
the  government  of  the  United  States,  originally  weak  in 
Mr.  Jefferson's  mind,  has  given  way  to  something  very 
like  dislike  in  Mr.  Madison's.  ...  In  such  a  state  of 
mind  both  these  gentlemen  are  prepared  to  hazard  a  great 
deal  to  effect  a  change.  Most  of  the  important  measures 
of  every  government  are  connected  with  the  treasury. 
To  subvert  the  present  head  of  it,  they  deem  it  expedient 
to  risk  rendering  the  government  itself  odious;  perhaps 
foolishly  thinking  that  they  can  easily  recover  the  lost  af 
fections  and  confidence  of  the  people,  and  not  appreciating, 
as  they  ought  to  do,  the  natural  resistance  to  government, 
which  in  every  community  results  from  the  human  pas 
sions,  the  degree  to  which  this  has  been  strengthened  by 
the  organized  rivality  of  State  governments,  and  the  in 
finite  danger  that  the  national  government  once  rendered 
odious,  will  be  kept  so  by  these  powerful  and  indefatigable 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    269 

enemies.  They  forget  an  old,  but  a  very  just  though  a 
coarse  saying,  that  it  is  much  easier  to  raise  the  devil 
than  to  lay  him. 

This  acute  criticism  is  not  only  a  fine  piece  of 
political  psychology,  but  it  is  also  entitled  to  rank 
as  political  prophecy.  The  Civil  War  was  logically 
the  outcome  of  principles  originally  advanced  in 
the  war  against  Hamilton. 

-<xThe  Carrington  letter  was  undoubtedly  meant  to 
call  Jefferson  and  Madison  to  public  account  in 
their  own  State  for  their  behavior.  It  was  written 
to  be  shown  about  and,  according  to  the  customs  of 
the  times,  it  was  a  more  direct  challenge  to  them 
than  a  newspaper  article  would  have  been.  At  that 
time,  both  in  England  and  America,  it  was  consid 
ered  undignified  to  go  into  journalism  in  one's  proper 
person;  a  pseudonym  was  the  rule  even  when  the 
actual  authorship  was  generally  known.  But  the 
Carrington  letter  bore  Hamilton's  signature  and  it 
might  readily  have  been  the  beginning  of  a  direct 
controversy,  but  Jefferson  and  Madison  were  too 
cautious  to  be  drawn.  Jefferson  countered  in  a 
letter  to  George  Mason,  of  Virginia,  arraigning  the 
financial  policy  of  the  Government  as  a  scheme  of 
corruption,  having  for  its  ultimate  object  "to  pre 
pare  the  way  for  a  change  from  the  present  republican 
form  of  government  to  that  of  monarchy,  of  which 
the  British  constitution  is  to  be  the  model."  The 
letter  was  virtually  an  indictment  of  Hamilton's 


270  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

policy  drawn  out  under  twenty-one  heads,  and  this 
particularity  turned  out  to  be  an  advantage  to 
Hamilton.  What  he  most  desired  was  that  charges 
against  him  should  be  given  some  definite  shape  so 
that  he  could  meet  them,  and  this  favor  Jefferson's 
letter  happened  to  supply.  Mason  gave  Washing 
ton  a  copy  and  Washington  transmitted  the  charges 
to  Hamilton  with  a  request  for  his  "  ideas  upon  the 
discontents  here  enumerated."  Hamilton  replied 
seriatim,  expressing  himself  with  marked  warmth, 
as  to  which  he  remarked:  "I  have  not  fortitude 
enough  always  to  bear  with  calmness  calumnies 
which  necessarily  include  me,  as  a  principal  agent 
in  the  measures  censured,  of  the  falsehood  of  which 
I  have  the  most  unqualified  consciousness."  The 
objections  which  Hamilton  had  to  meet  as  to  the 
propriety  of  loans,  funding  operations,  and  bank 
ing  facilities  are  now  so  obsolete  that  the  main  im 
pression  left  by  examination  of  the  documents  is 
the  absurdity  of  the  elaborate  case  framed  by 
Jefferson.  It  was  a  pointless  argument  to  expatiate 
upon  the  burden  laid  upon  the  Government  by  the 
funding  scheme  unless  some  other  way  could  be 
instanced  for  disposing  of  obligations  that  the 
Government  could  not  meet.  Now  there  was  an 
other  way — that  of  simply  ignoring  them,  and  the 
only  logical  ground  of  complaint  against  Hamilton 
was  that  he  did  not  take  that  way,  which  was  repu 
diation.  But  Jefferson  did  not  venture  to  take  that 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    271 

ground,  so  it  was  easy  for  Hamilton  to  brush  away 
his  cavils  by  pointing  out  that  "The  public  debt  was 
produced  by  the  late  war.  It  is  not  the  fault  of  the 
present  government  that  it  exists,  unless  it  can  be 
proved  that  public  morality  and  policy  do  not  require 
of  a  government  an  honest  provision  for  its  debts." 
Nevertheless  there  was  a  strong  feeling,  among  men 
of  all  parties,  that  Hamilton  might  have  avoided 
that  issue  and  let  the  Revolutionary  debt  sink  itself 
through  inattention  to  it,  thus  starting  the  new 
government  without  any  burden  of  debt.  Even  in 
the  Federalist  ranks  there  was  rather  a  grudge 
against  Hamilton  that  he  was  so  determined  to 
rake  up  and  pay  off  the  old  obligations,  and  this 
accounts  for  much  of  the  detraction  he  had  to  en 
dure  from  some  who  figured  as  his  allies. 

The  only  effect  of  the  cabinet  attacks,  so  far  a5 
Hamilton  was  concerned,  was  to  fortify  his  position 
in  Washington's  esteem;  but  Washington  himself 
was  so  disturbed  by  the  continual  dissension  that 
he  wanted  to  retire  from  public  life.  This  did  not 
at  all  suit  Jefferson's  book.  What  his  faction  de 
sired  was  that  Washington  should  stay  on  but 
should  act  in  their  interest.  Although  it  is  now 
known,  since  his  private  correspondence  is  acces 
sible,  that  Washington  was  strongly  in  favor  of 
assumption,  he  judged  it  wise  to  practise  strict  ret 
icence  as  to  his  own  views,  as  the  original  concep 
tion  of  the  Presidential  office  was  that  it  should  be 


272  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

above  and  beyond  party  spirit,  like  royalty.  Eng 
lish  political  thought  still  colored  men's  thoughts, 
and  the  object  of  Jefferson's  manoeuvres  was  what 
in  England  would  have  been  called  a  change  of 
ministry.  What  this  practically  meant  in  the 
American  situation  was  that  Hamilton  should  be 
put  out  of  office,  whereupon,  it  was  thought,  Wash 
ington  would  naturally  be  guided  by  the  advice 
of  his  Virginia  associates — Jefferson,  Madison,  and 
Randolph.  Washington  went  so  far  in  his  plans  for 
retirement  that  he  asked  Madison  to  prepare  a  fare 
well  message  for  his  use;  but  the  whole  Virginia 
set  now  labored  to  induce  him  to  consent  to  re-elec 
tion,  and  he  reluctantly  consented. 

The  election  over,  the  Jefferson  cabal  adopted 
new  tactics.  Instead  of  working  directly  upon 
Washington,  they  now  planned  to  reach  and  move 
him  through  the  action  of  Congress.  In  this  scheme 
they  were  greatly  aided  by  the  conditions  that  had 
been  established  in  Congress.  Among  the  conse 
quences  of  the  exclusion  of  the  Administration  from 
the  floor  of  Congress  is  the  loss  by  Congress  of  in 
telligent  control  of  its  own  business.  Had  Hamil 
ton  had  the  opportunity  of  confronting  his  accusers 
the  growth  of  such  fable  as  now  collected  about  his 
plans  and  proceedings  would  have  been  impossible. 
Every  one  knows  the  difference  between  saying 
things  to  a  man's  face  and  behind  his  back.  The 
latter  is  the  Congressional  method,  and  the  only 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    273 

way  in  which  matters  can  be  brought  to  an  issue 
is  by  the  slow,  cumbersome  method  of  resolutions 
of  inquiry  and  committees  of  investigation.  Such 
means  can  be  readily  employed  for  purposes  of  sheer 
partisan  annoyance,  and  there  are  innumerable 
instances  of  this  character  in  the  history  of  Congress. 
The  evil  has  been  aggravated  by  patronage  develop 
ments.  The  creation  of  committees  furnishes  plausi 
ble  occasion  for  numerous  clerkships  and  other  sub 
ordinate  offices  to  be  distributed  by  Congressional 
favor.  Activities  of  this  order  are  now  very  marked 
as  a  political  campaign  comes  on,  and  they  constitute 
one  of  the  greatest  abuses  of  American  politics. 
This  partisan  machinery  had  its  origin  in  the  war 
on  Hamilton.  His  enemies  sought  to  break  him  by 
a  series  of  Congressional  attacks,  concerted  in  se 
crecy  with  the  advice  and  assistance  of  Jefferson 
and  Madison.  They  obtained  an  ally  in  Congress 
who  possessed  exceptional  courage,  energy,  and 
address. 

William  Branch  Giles,  of  Virginia,  was  a  lawyer 
who  was  as  fearless  as  Hamilton  himself  in  con 
fronting  opposition.  British  debt  cases  had  been 
a  marked  feature  of  his  practice,  in  the  teeth  of 
Virginia  law  prohibiting  actions  of  this  class,  but 
Giles  took  the  position,  first  maintained  by  Hamil 
ton,  that  the  Peace  Treaty  of  1783  prevailed  over 
any  opposing  State  law,  and  he  pressed  his  cases 
with  energy  and  success  on  the  basis  of  a  national* 


274  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

jurisdiction  in  conflict  with  the  Virginia  statutes. 
This  course  was  not  calculated  to  secure  political 
popularity,  but  he  sheltered  himself  by  the  plea 
of  professional  duty,  and  on  other  matters  he  culti 
vated  popular  support  with  such  success  that  he 
got  into  the  First  Congress  at  a  special  election  to 
fill  a  vacancy.  When  he  took  his  seat  the  Assump 
tion  Bill  had  been  passed,  but  he  followed  Madison's 
lead  in  unsuccessful  opposition  to  the  Bank  Bill. 
He  was  re-elected  to  the  Second  Congress  and  during 
its  sessions  displayed  so  much  energy  and  audacity 
that  Madison  stepped  aside  to  allow  him  to  lead 
in  the  war  on  Hamilton.  After  some  preliminary 
skirmishing  a  grand  attack  was  made  on  January 
23,  1793,  when  Giles  presented  a  series  of  resolu 
tions,  in  drafting  which  he  had  had  the  assistance  of 
Jefferson  and  Madison.  He  supported  them  in  an 
adroit  speech  in  which  he  said  that  they  had  grown 
out  of  the  embarrassments  he  had  met  with  in  try 
ing  to  comprehend  the  statements  of  the  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury  respecting  foreign  loans.  He  sub 
mitted  calculations  suggestive  of  discrepancies,  which 
he  admitted  might  be  removed  by  explanations  but 
which  at  least  showed  that  the  House  needed  more 
information  than  it  had. 

The  tact  and  moderation  of  this  speech  had  such 
an  effect  that  the  resolutions  were  adopted  without 
serious  opposition,  although,  so  far  as  Giles's  claim 
of  ignorance  was  well  founded,  it  was  an  exposure 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    275 

of  the  defective  procedure  of  the  House.  Could 
Hamilton  have  come  before  the  House  he  could  at 
once  have  supplied  all  the  information  it  needed 
and  all  the  explanations  it  desired.  As  it  was  he 
had  to  meet  a  heavy  demand  upon  the  resources  of 
his  department.  The  resolutions  called  for  particu 
lars  of  all  loans,  names  of  all  persons  to  whom  pay 
ments  had  been  made,  statements  of  semimonthly 
balances  between  the  Treasury  and  the  bank,  and 
an  account  of  the  sinking-fund  and  of  unexpended 
appropriations,  from  the  beginning  until  the  end 
of  1792.  In  effect,  the  resolutions  required  Hamil 
ton  to  complete  and  state  all  Treasury  accounts, 
almost  to  date,  and  to  give  a  transcript  of  all  the 
particulars.  But  the  Treasury  accounts  were  in 
such  perfect  order,  and  so  great  was  Hamilton's 
capacity  for  work,  that  the  information  called  for 
was  promptly  transmitted,  in  reports  dated  Febru 
ary  4,  13,  and  14. 

In  completing  the  heavy  task  laid  upon  him  by 
his  enemies,  Hamilton  observed  that  the  resolutions 
"were  not  moved  without  a  pretty  copious  display 
of  the  reasons  on  which  they  were  founded/'  which 
"were  of  a  nature  to  excite  attention,  to  beget 
alarm,  to  inspire  doubts."  This  remark  was  taken 
as  ground  for  a  charge  that  he  was  "  guilty  of  an  in 
decorum  to  this  House,  in  undertaking  to  judge  of 
its  motives  in  calling  for  information."  Nothing 
was  found  amiss  in  the  accounts;  on  the  contrary, 


276  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

examination  showed  exactness,  clearness,  and  order 
throughout.  But  on  February  28, 1793,  Giles  moved 
nine  resolutions,  charging  Hamilton  with  violation 
of  law,  neglect  of  duty,  and  transgression  of  the 
proper  limits  of  his  authority.  The  resolutions  did 
not  propose  impeachment  or,  indeed,  any  action  by 
Congress  whatsoever,  further  than  that  "a  copy  of 
the  foregoing  resolutions  should  be  transmitted  to 
the  President  of  the  United  States."  The  proceed 
ings  virtually  amounted  to  a  declaration  of  want  of 
confidence,  with  the  expectation  that  Washington 
would  be  thereby  constrained  to  remove  Hamilton 
from  office. 

Hamilton  felt  keenly  the  disadvantage  he  was  un 
der  in  not  being  allowed  to  face  his  accusers  on  the 
floor  of  the  House.  In  the  circumstances  the  best 
he  could  do  was  to  supply  his  friends  with  material 
for  use  in  the  debate.  A  speech  delivered  by  Wil 
liam  Smith,  of  South  Carolina,  was  in  fact  written 
by  Hamilton,  and  it  bears  the  marks  of  his  style. 
In  it  he  exclaimed  what  injustice  it  was  to  "con 
demn  a  man  unheard,  nay,  without  his  having  even 
been  furnished  with  the  charges  against  him !" 

The  charges  were  intrinsically  so  weak  that  they 
could  not  stand  up  under  discussion.  The  imputa 
tions  of  wrong-doing  rested  upon  mere  cavils.  It 
could  not  even  be  alleged  that  any  public  interest 
had  sustained  actual  harm.  It  became  so  manifest 
that  the  resolutions  were  founded  on  nothing  more 


THE  ANTI-HAMILTON  CAMPAIGN    277 

substantial  than  spite  that  Giles  could  not  hold  his 
forces  together.  After  the  third  resolution  had  been 
defeated  by  a  vote  of  forty  to  twelve,  an  attempt  was 
made  to  withdraw  the  others,  but  the  House  insisted 
upon  consideration.  One  by  one  the  remaining  res 
olutions  were  voted  down  by  increasing  majorities, 
until  only  seven  members  voted  with  Giles  at  the 
last,  among  them  James  Madison.  It  was  a  signal 
triumph  for  Hamilton  and  an  occasion  for  deep 
chagrin  with  Jefferson  and  Madison.  Jefferson 
held  that  the  judgment  of  Congress  might  be  re 
vised  at  a  future  session  and  efforts  to  overthrow 
Hamilton  were  steadily  continued. 


CHAPTER  XIX 
THE  INFLUENCE  OF  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION 

IN  the  course  of  his  criticisms  upon  Jefferson  and 
Madison ,  in  his  Carrington  letter  of  May  26,  1792, 
Hamilton  said: 

In  respect  to  foreign  politics,  the  views  of  these  gentle 
men  are,  in  my  judgment,  equally  unsound  and  danger 
ous.  They  have  a  womanish  attachment  to  France  and 
a  womanish  resentment  against  Great  Britain.  They 
would  draw  us  into  the  closest  embrace  of  the  former,  and 
involve  us  in  all  the  consequences  of  her  politics;  and  they 
would  risk  the  peace  of  the  country  in  their  endeavors  to 
keep  us  at  the  greatest  possible  distance  from  the  latter. 
This  disposition  goes  to  a  length,  particularly  in  Mr. 
Jefferson,  of  which,  till  lately,  I  had  no  adequate  idea. 
Various  circumstances  prove  to  me  that  if  these  gentle 
men  were  left  to  pursue  their  own  course,  there  would  be, 
in  less  than  six  months,  an  open  war  between  the  United 
States  and  Great  Britain.  I  trust  I  have  a  due  sense  of 
the  conduct  of  France  towards  this  country  in  the  late 
revolution;  and  that  I  shall  always  be  among  the  fore 
most  in  making  her  every  suitable  return;  but  there  is 
a  wide  difference  between  this  and  implicating  ourselves 
in  all  her  politics;  between  bearing  good  will  to  her  and 
hating  and  wrangling  with  all  those  whom  she  hates. 
The  neutral  and  the  pacific  policy  appears  to  me  to  mark 
the  true  path  to  the  United  States. 

278 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION         279 

The  records  made  in  The  Anas  show  that  Ham 
ilton  did  not  err  in  his  estimate  of  the  extent  of 
Jefferson's  partiality  to  France.  The  enthusiasm 
he  had  contracted  for  the  revolutionary  movement 
while  resident  in  France  during  its  early  stages, 
while  it  had  a  philanthropic  complexion,  he  carried 
with  him  into  Washington's  Cabinet  and  it  colored 
his  official  behavior.  He  himself  noted,  on  Decem 
ber  27,  1792,  that  the  duty  of  the  United  States  to 
support  France  against  England  and  Spain  was  the 
"doctrine  which  had  been  my  polar  star."  Numer 
ous  entries  show  that  it  was  a  satisfaction  to  Jeffer 
son  to  record  the  energy  and  persistence  with  which 
he  took  the  French  side  in  any  discussion  of  the  sub 
ject  in  the  meetings  of  the  Cabinet. 

Shortly  after  Hamilton  had  beaten  the  Jefferson 
faction  in  Congress  a  crisis  was  brought  on  by  the 
breaking  out  of  war  between  France  and  England. 
An  able  and  experienced  diplomatist,  Edmond 
Genet,  was  sent  out  to  claim  the  United  States  as  an 
ally  and  to  use  her  territory  as  a  base  of  operations 
against  England.  Genet  landed  at  Charleston, 
April  8,  1793,  receiving  an  enthusiastic  welcome, 
and  he  was  so  prompt  and  energetic  that  within  five 
days  he  had  opened  a  recruiting  station  at  which 
American  seamen  were  taken  into  the  French  ser 
vice;  he  had  commissioned  American  vessels  as 
French  cruisers,  and  he  had  erected  the  office  of  the 
French  consul  into  an  admiralty  court  to  deal  with 
the  prizes  that  were  being  brought  in» 


280  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Washington  was  at  Mount  Vernon  when  the  news 
reached  him.  He  at  once  called  a  meeting  of  the 
Cabinet  and  set  out  to  Philadelphia  to  attend  it. 
He  arrived  there  on  April  17,  and  the  next  day  he 
laid  before  the  members  of  the  Cabinet  thirteen 
questions  upon  which  he  desired  their  advice. 
Jefferson  noted  that  the  questions  were  in  Wash 
ington's  own  handwriting,  "yet  it  was  palpable 
from  the  style,  their  ingenious  tissue  and  suite,  that 
they  were  not  the  President's,  that  they  were  raised 
upon  a  prepared  chain  of  argument,  in  short,  that 
the  language  was  Hamilton's  and  the  doubts  his 
alone."  In  Jefferson's  opinion  they  were  designed 
to  lead  "to  a  declaration  of  the  Executive  that  our 
treaty  with  France  is  void."  Jefferson  was  right 
as  to  Hamilton's  authorship.  At  a  time  when 
Jefferson  had  no  advice  to  give  save  that  it  would 
be  well  to  consider  whether  Congress  ought  not  to 
be  summoned,  Hamilton  had  ready  for  Washing 
ton's  use  a  set  of  interrogatories  which  subjected 
the  whole  situation  to  exact  analysis.  The  critical 
questions  were  these: 

Shall  a  proclamation  issue  for  the  purpose  of  pre 
venting  interferences  of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States 
in  the  war  between  France  and  Great  Britain,  &c.  ? 
Shall  it  contain  a  declaration  of  neutrality  or  not  ?  What 
shall  it  contain  ? 

Are  the  United  States  obliged,  by  good  faith,  to  con 
sider  the  treaties  heretofore  made  with  France  as  apply- 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION         281 

ing  to  the  present  situation  of  the  parties?  May  they 
either  renounce  them,  or  hold  them  suspended  till  the 
government  of  France  shall  be  established  ? 

The  issues  thus  clearly  stated  involved  some  nice 
questions  of  international  obligation.  There  were 
two  treaties  between  France  and  the  United  States, 
both  concluded  on  the  same  day.  One  provided 
that  the  ships  of  war  of  each  country  should  defend 
the  vessels  of  the  other  country  from  all  attacks  that 
might  occur  while  they  were  in  company.  Each 
country  had  the  right  to  use  the  ports  of  the  other, 
either  for  regular  ships  of  war  or  for  privateers  and 
their  prizes,  which  were  to  be  exempt  from  any  ex 
amination  or  detention,  "but  they  may  hoist  sail 
at  any  time  and  depart."  All  vessels  of  either 
country  were  entitled  to  refuge  in  the  ports  of  the 
other,  with  entire  freedom  for  repair  and  the  pur 
chase  of  supplies,  but  it  was  expressly  provided 
that  such  hospitality  should  not  be  extended  to 
vessels  of  an  enemy  of  either  country.  The  accom 
panying  instrument,  entitled  a  treaty  of  alliance, 
was  a  mutual  guarantee  of  territory,  "forever  against 
all  other  powers."  These  broad  rights  and  privileges 
were  supplemented  in  1788  by  a  convention  which 
provided  for  consular  jurisdiction  over  cases  involv 
ing  treaty  rights.  Genet  thus  had  large  warrant 
for  his  activities,  if  the  treaties  were  still  binding. 
They  had  been  made  with  the  King  of  France,  whose 
head  had  been  sliced  off  by  the  guillotine.  The 


282  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

French  revolutionary  government  held  that  his 
engagements  fell  with  his  head  and  that  they  were 
free  to  decide  what  treaties  of  the  old  monarchy 
should  be  retained  and  what  rejected.  It  was  their 
policy  to  retain  the  American  treaties,  and  Genet 
was  under  instructions  to  use  the  United  States 
not  only  as  an  ally  against  England  but  also  as 
an  instrument  for  restoring  French  colonial  empire 
in  America.  To  gain  Canada,  Louisiana,  and  the 
Floridas  was  among  the  objects  of  his  mission.  He 
counted  upon  obtaining  funds  through  collection 
of  the  amount  still  due  to  France  on  the  old  loans 
to  the  United  States.  This  remainder  was  then 
about  $2,300,000,  and  now  France  made  a  demand 
for  three  million  livres, — about  $600,000, — promis 
ing  that  the  entire  amount  would  be  laid  out  in 
the  purchase  of  supplies  in  the  American  market. 
On  February  25,  1793,  Jefferson  noted  that  all  the 
members  of  the  Cabinet  were  willing  to  grant  this 
demand  except  Hamilton,  who  stood  out  for  keep 
ing  to  the  stipulated  terms,  according  to  which  only 
an  instalment  of  $318,000  was  then  due. 

On  the  question  of  a  proclamation  Jefferson  now 
argued  that  it  would  be  equivalent  to  declaring  that 
the  United  States  would  take  no  part  in  the  war, 
and  that  the  Executive  had  no  right  to  take  this 
position  since  it  was  the  exclusive  province  of  Con 
gress  to  declare  war.  Therefore  Congress  should 
be  called  to  consider  the  question.  Hamilton,  who 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION         283 

held  that  it  was  both  the  right  and  the  duty  of  the 
President  to  proclaim  neutrality,  was  strongly  op 
posed  to  summoning  Congress.  In  a  brief  note  of 
the  cabinet  meeting  he  remarked  that  "whether 
this  advice  proceeded  from  a  secret  wish  to  involve 
us  in  a  war,  or  from  a  constitutional  timidity,  cer 
tain  it  is  such  a  step  would  have  been  fatal  to  the 
peace  and  tranquillity  of  America."  Hamilton 
pressed  his  views  with  such  force  that  Jefferson 
agreed  that  if  the  term  " neutrality"  were  not  em 
ployed  a  proclamation  might  be  issued  enjoining 
American  citizens  from  all  acts  and  proceedings  in 
consistent  with  the  duties  of  a  friendly  nation.  It 
was  then  unanimously  decided  that  Congress  should 
not  be  convoked  in  advance  of  the  regular  session. 
The  proclamation  was  drafted  by  Attorney-General 
Randolph,  who  showed  it  to  Jefferson  to  assure  him 
that  "there  was  no  such  word  as  neutrality  in  it." 
Although  Jefferson  raised  no  objection  to  the  word 
ing  of  the  proclamation  at  the  time,  a  few  months 
later  he  referred  to  it  in  letters  to  friends  as  a  piece 
of  "pusillanimity,"  because  it  omitted  any  expression 
of  the  affection  of  America  for  France. 

By  its  terms  the  proclamation  was  simply  an  ad 
monition  to  American  citizens  to  keep  out  of  the 
war,  with  notice  that  they  would  be  liable  to  prose 
cution  for  acts  of  a  nature  to  "violate  the  law  of 
nations."  It  is  manifest  that  the  question  whether 
or  not  the  treaties  with  France  were  still  in  force  was 


284  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

of  great  practical  importance.  If  they  were,  they 
were  part  of  the  law  of  the  land  and  American  citi 
zens  might  claim  immunity  for  acts  done  under 
cover  of  their  provisions.  Hamilton  held  that  the 
treaty  obligations  should  be  suspended  since  a  situa 
tion  had  arisen  which  made  them  inconsistent  with  a 
policy  of  neutrality.  They  contemplated  only  de 
fensive  war;  but  France  had  taken  the  offensive, 
thereby  relieving  the  United  States  of  her  reciprocal 
obligations.  Jefferson  held  that  the  treaty  stipula 
tions  were  still  operative,  for,  even  if  they  apparently 
required  the  United  States  to  engage  in  the  war, 
it  did  not  follow  that  such  would  be  the  actual  con 
sequence.  The  possibility  was  "not  certain  enough 
to  authorize  us  in  sound  morality  to  declare,  at  this 
moment,  the  treaties  null."  It  is  not  at  all  surprising 
that  with  this  ambiguity  in  the  position  of  the  Gov 
ernment,  there  was  difficulty  in  giving  practical  effect 
to  the  proclamation.  When  proceedings  were  taken 
against  Gideon  Henfield,  an  American  citizen  who 
had  enlisted  to  serve  on  a  French  privateer,  Genet 
came  to  his  defense  and  obtained  a  jury  verdict  of 
acquittal,  which  was  popularly  regarded  as  a  rebuke 
to  the  Administration  and  a  victory  for  Genet. 

The  whole  country  thrilled  with  enthusiasm  in  be 
half  of  France.  According  to  Chief  Justice  Marshall, 
"a  great  majority  of  the  American  people  deemed 
it  criminal  to  remain  unconcerned  spectators  of  a 
conflict  between  their  ancient  enemy  and  republican 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION         285 

France."  Genet's  journey  from  Charleston  to  Phila 
delphia  assumed  the  character  of  a  triumphal  prog 
ress.  As  he  approached  the  city  a  procession  was 
formed  to  escort  him  to  his  lodgings.  Among  John 
Adams's  reminiscences  is  an  account  of  "the  terror 
ism  excited  by  Genet  in  1793,  when  ten  thousand 
people  in  the  streets  of  Philadelphia,  day  after  day, 
threatened  to  drag  Washington  out  of  his  house,  and 
effect  a  revolution  in  the  government,  or  compel 
it  to  declare  war  in  favor  of  the  French  Revolu 
tion  and  against  England."  Adams  related  that 
he  judged  it  prudent  to  order  a  chest  of  arms  from 
the  war-office  to  be  brought  into  his  house  to  defend 
it  from  attack. 

This  account,  written  many  years  after  the  event, 
is  no  doubt  accurate  in  its  description  of  the  alarm 
which  the  situation  caused  to  a  timid  man.  Letters 
written  by  Hamilton  during  all  this  excitement  show 
that  he  viewed  it  with  cool  intrepidity.  In  May, 
1 793,  he  wrote  that  the  number  of  persons  who  went 
to  meet  Genet  "would  be  stated  high  at  a  hundred/' 
and  he  did  not  believe  that  a  tenth  part  of  the  city 
participated  in  the  meetings  and  addresses  of  Genet's 
sympathizers.  "A  crowd  will  always  draw  a  crowd, 
whatever  be  the  purpose.  Curiosity  will  supply  the 
place  of  attachment  to,  or  interest  in,  the  object." 
Washington's  own  letters  at  this  period  show  no 
trace  of  concern  about  his  personal  safety,  but  he 
smarted  under  the  attacks  on  his  motives.  In  Jef- 


286  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ferson's  Anas,  under  date  of  August  2,  1793,  is  an 
account  of  an  explosion  of  rage  over  a  print  in  which 
Washington  was  brought  to  the  guillotine  for  crimes 
against  liberty.  According  to  Jefferson,  Washing 
ton  swore  that  "by  God  he  had  rather  be  in  his 
grave  than  in  his  present  situation;  that  he  had 
rather  be  on  his  farm  than  to  be  made  emperor  of 
the  world;  and  yet  that  they  were  charging  him  with 
wanting  to  be  a  king." 

At  the  cabinet  meeting  of  April  19  there  had  been 
a  sharp  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  way  in  which 
Genet  should  be  received.  Jefferson  and  Randolph 
were  of  opinion  that  the  reception  should  be  uncon 
ditional.  Hamilton,  supported  by  Knox;  proposed 
that  this  notice  should  be  given  to  Genet: 

That  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  uniformly 
entertaining  cordial  wishes  for  the  happiness  of  the  French 
nation,  and  disposed  to  maintain  with  it  amicable  com 
munication  and  intercourse,  uninterrupted  by  political 
vicissitudes,  does  not  hesitate  to  receive  him  in  the  char 
acter,  which  his  credentials  import;  yet,  considering  the 
origin,  course,  and  circumstances  of  the  relations  continued 
between  the  two  countries  and  the  existing  position  of  the 
affairs  of  France,  it  is  deemed  advisable  and  proper  on 
the  part  of  the  United  States  to  reserve  to  future  consider 
ation  and  discussion  the  question,  whether  the  operation 
of  the  treaties,  by  which  those  relations  were  formed, 
ought  not  to  be  temporarily  and  provisionally  suspended; 
and  under  this  impression  it  is  thought  due  to  a  spirit; 
of  candid  and  friendly  procedure,  to  apprise  him  before 
hand  of  the  intention  to  reserve  that  question,  lest  silence 
on  the  point  should  occasion  misconstruction. 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION         287 

The  even  division  of  the  Cabinet,  coupled  with 
the  fact  that  the  matter  belonged  to  Jefferson's 
department,  caused  Washington  to  refrain  from 
making  a  decision,  the  practical  effect  being  that 
Jefferson  had  his  way.  This  left  Genet  in  a  position 
to  claim  all  the  advantages  conferred  upon  France 
by  the  treaties,  and  he  took  an  attitude  of  indignant 
remonstrance  at  the  duplicity  of  the  American  posi 
tion.  Did  not  the  United  States  have  treaty  en 
gagements  with  France  ?  By  what  authority,  then, 
did  the  Administration  interfere  with  him  in  the  en 
joyment  of  his  rights  as  the  representative  of  France, 
and  interfere  with  American  citizens  in  their  deal 
ings  with  him  ?  "As  long  as  the  States,  assembled  in 
Congress,  shall  not  have  determined  that  this  solemn 
engagement  should  not  be  performed,  no  one  has 
the  right  to  shackle  our  operations." 

Genet's  argument  turned  against  Jefferson  the 
same  points  that  Jefferson  himself  had  been  making 
in  the  cabinet  meetings.  Jefferson  replied  that 
"  without  appealing  to  treaties,  we  are  at  peace  with 
all  by  the  law  of  nature; — for  by  nature's  law  man 
is  at  peace  with  man."  Genet  insisted  with  entire 
logical  propriety  that  if  the  treaties  were  in  force  he 
was  entitled  to  act  in  accordance  with  them,  and  he 
managed  to  engage  in  the  French  service  a  consider 
able  fleet  of  American  vessels.  On  June  19  he  was 
able  to  inform  his  government:  "I  am  provisioning 
the  West  Indies,  I  excite  the  Canadians  to  break 
the  British  yoke,  I  arm  the  Kentukois,  and  prepare 


288  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

a  naval  expedition  which  will  facilitate  the  descent 
on  New  Orleans."  The  last-mentioned  enterprise 
is  one  which  he  had  arranged  with  the  famous 
frontier  commander  George  Rogers  Clark,  who  was 
ready  to  invade  Louisiana  if  funds  and  supplies 
were  provided.  Genet's  intimacy  with  Jefferson 
was  such  that  he  talked  to  him  about  this  enterprise. 
Jefferson  complained  that  enticing  officers  and  men 
from  Kentucky  to  go  against  Spain  "was  really 
putting  a  halter  about  their  necks/'  but  he  did  not 
think  he  had  any  right  to  interfere,  and  he  noted 
that  Genet  "communicated  these  things  to  me,  not 
as  Secretary  of  State,  but  as  Mr.  Jefferson." 

Genet  acted  with  such  ability  and  energy  that  he 
might  have  used  the  United  States  as  the  Germans 
used  Turkey,  had  not  Hamilton  stood  in  the  way. 
Genet's  chief  trouble  for  some  time  was  only  lack  of 
funds,  due  to  Hamilton's  steady  refusal  to  anticipate 
the  maturing  of  the  French  loan.  Everything  else 
seemed  to  be  going  in  Genet's  favor  when  on  June 
29,  1793,  publication  began  of  a  series  of  eight 
articles  signed  "Pacificus."  Although  rapidly  pro 
duced,  in  the  midst  of  alarms,  they  are  so  dignified 
in  style,  elevated  in  thought,  acute  in  analysis,  and 
cogent  in  reasoning  that  they  have  taken  classic 
rank  as  a  treatise  upon  international  rights  and 
duties.  The  effect  upon  all  people  capable  of 
serious  thought  was  so  marked  that  at  Jefferson's 
instance  and  with  his  aid  Madison  attempted  a 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION         289 

reply,  but  desisted  after  producing  five  articles  over 
the  signature  "Helvidius,"  making  the  familiar 
points  of  strict-construction  theorizing  as  to  execu 
tive  limitations,  but  failing  to  reach  the  main  point 
of  what  to  do  and  how  to  do  it.  Neither  Jeffersjon 
nor  Madison  was  a  match  for  Hamilton  in  debate, 
and  public  opinion  now  began  to  turn  against  them. 
For  this  they  now  blamed  Genet,  who  after  all  was 
only  claiming  treaty  rights  which  Jefferson  acknowl 
edged.  By  July  7  Jefferson  was  writing  to  Madi 
son  that  "Genet  renders  my  position  immensely 
difficult."  But,  as  Genet  was  acting  in  the  interests 
of  his  mission  and  not  in  Jefferson's  interest,  he  con 
tinued  to  equip  vessels  in  American  ports  to  prey 
on  British  commerce.  In  his  perplexity  Jefferson, 
on  July  12,  actually  wrote  to  Hammond,  the  British 
minister,  requesting  him  not  to  allow  such  vessels 
to  depart.  Hammond  naturally  expressed  surprise 
that  he  should  receive  such  an  application,  since  he 
had  no  control  over  their  movements. 

Among  the  vessels  mentioned  in  Jefferson's  letter 
was  The  Little  Sarah,  a  British  merchantman,  which 
had  been  brought  into  Philadelphia  as  a  French 
prize  and  was  being  refitted  as  a  French  privateer, 
its  name  changed  to  Le  Petit  Democrate.  This, 
proceeding  brought  on  a  crisis.  Steps  were  taken  to 
detain  the  vessel  by  force,  but  Jefferson  protested 
and  undertook  to  arrange  with  Genet  that  the  vessel 
should  not  sail  until  its  legal  status  was  decided, 


290  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

urging  that  the  President  would  consult  the  justices 
of  the  Supreme  Court,  "whose  knowledge  of  the  sub 
ject  would  secure  against  errors  dangerous  to  the 
peace  of  the  United  States,  and  their  authority  in 
sure  the  respect  of  all  parties." 

Washington,  harassed  and  confused  by  the  dis 
sensions  in  his  Cabinet,  had  indeed  decided  to  take 
this  step.  Hamilton  was  opposed  to  a  proceeding 
which  involved  pre judgment  on  questions  that 
might  come  before  the  court  in  due  course  of  law, 
and  which  seemed  to  him  to  be  an  evasion  of  the 
proper  responsibility  of  the  Executive,  but  he  took 
part  in  preparing  the  case.  Of  the  twenty-nine 
questions  submitted  to  the  Supreme  Court,  Hamil 
ton  framed  twenty-one,  Jefferson  seven,  and  Wash 
ington  himself  added  one.  The  justices  declined  to 
answer.  Jefferson  then  consulted  Randolph  whether 
they  could  not  "  prepare  a  bill  for  Congress  to  appoint 
a  board  or  some  other  body  of  advice  for  the  Execu 
tive  on  such  questions."  But  expedients  for  dodg 
ing  executive  responsibility  had  by  that  time  been 
exhausted.  Le  Petit  Democrate  had  meanwhile  put 
to  sea.  Jefferson  felt  hurt  and  indignant  over  the 
way  Genet  had  treated  him.  He  now  joined  with 
the  rest  of  the  Cabinet  in  demanding  that  Genet 
should  be  recalled,  and  his  despatch  setting  forth 
the  reasons  is  a  dignified  and  powerful  presentation 
of  the  case.  But  at  this  very  time  Genet  was  still 
strongly  upheld  by  the  Jeffersonian  press.  Freneau's 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION         291 

National  Gazette  maintained  that,  so  far  from  over 
stepping  his  rights,  Genet  had  really  acted  "too 
tamely";  had  indeed  been  "too  accommodating 
for  the  peace  of  the  United  States."  Hamilton  now 
again  appealed  to  public  opinion  in  a  series  of  articles 
over  the  signature  "No  Jacobin/7  in  which  Genet's 
behavior  was  reviewed.  After  five  articles  had 
appeared  the  series  ended  abruptly  because  Hamilton 
was  stricken  by  the  yellow  fever  which  raged  in 
Philadelphia  that  summer.  But  the  battle  was  now 
won.  A  reaction  had  set  in  for  which  Jefferson  laid 
the  blame  on  Genet's  defiant  bearing,  "risking  that 
disgust  which  I  had  so  much  wished  should  have 
been  avoided." 


CHAPTER  XX 
RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE 

IN  a  letter  of  July  31,  1793;  at  a  time  when  his 
troubles  with  Genet  over  Le  Petit  Democrate  were 
at  their  height,  Jefferson  wrote  to  Washington 
announcing  his  desire  to  resign  at  the  close  of 
the  next  month.  Jefferson  noted  that  Washington 
tried  to  dissuade  him,  and  in  the  course  of  their 
conversation  said  that  "  Colonel  Hamilton  had  three 
or  four  weeks  ago  written  to  him,  informing  him  that 
private  as  well  as  public  reasons  had  brought  him 
to  the  determination  to  retire,  and  that  he  should 
do  it  towards  the  close  of  the  next  session.  He  said 
he  had  often  before  intimated  dispositions  to  resign, 
but  never  as  decisively  before;  that  he  [Washington] 
supposed  he  had  fixed  on  the  latter  part  of  next  ses 
sion  to  give  an  opportunity  to  Congress  to  examine 
into  his  conduct." 

It  was  a  fact  that  Hamilton  had  become  anxious 
to  retire  from  public  office;  not  that  he  flinched  from 
its  burdens  and  anxieties,  but  simply  because  he 
could  not  afford  to  stay.  While  he  was  being  as 
sailed  as  the  manager  of  vast  profiteering  operations 
in  finance,  the  actual,  pitiful  fact  was  that  his  pay 
was  only  $3,500  a  year,  about  a  fourth  of  what  he 

292 


RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE        293 

might  have  been  earning  in  his  profession,  mean 
while  enjoying  the  respect  of  the  community,  whereas 
he  was  now  a  mark  for  calumny  and  slander.  Al 
though  more  than  any  other  man  he  was  establish-  , 
ing  the  new  government  on  a  solid  and  durable  basis,  / 
he  was  accused  of  planning  its  overthrow  and  was  '" 
the  object  of  a  vast  concoction  of  fiction  to  that 
purport.  Partisan  spite  goes  to  extreme  lengths  in 
American  politics,  but  never  has  it  been  so  wildly 
extravagant  as  in  the  case  of  Alexander  Hamilton. 
The  proverb  that  where  there  is  so  much  smoke 
there  must  be  some  fire  is  often  turned  to  account 
by  American  politicians  in  lighting  a  smudge  to 
darken  the  reputation  of  an  opponent,  and  Hamilton 
had  to  endure  more  of  this  sort  of  warfare  than  any 
other  American  statesman.  So  far  as  its  immediate 
purpose  was  concerned — that  of  forcing  him  out  of 
the  Cabinet — it  defeated  its  end  by  its  own  violence. 
He  wanted  to  get  out  as  soon  as  he  decently  could, 
but  he  did  not  intend  to  go  until  he  had  met  and 
answered  every  charge  that  could  be  brought  against 
him.  If  his  enemies  had  desisted  when  the  Giles 
charges  in  the  Second  Congress  broke  down,  he  would 
have  resigned  office  soon  thereafter.  But  when 
Giles  tried  to  explain  his  defeat  on  the  ground  that 
the  House  had  acted  without  due  examination  of  the 
evidence,  Hamilton  made  up  his  mind  that  he  would 
not  allow  his  enemies  that  excuse. 
When  the  Third  Congress  met,  December  2, 


294  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

1793,  the  Jeffersonians  were  strong  enough  to  elect 
the  Speaker.  Undeterred  by  the  fact  that  his  politi 
cal  enemies  were  now  in  full  control,  Hamilton  ad 
dressed  a  letter  to  the  Speaker  saying  that  it  had 
been  suggested  that  at  the  previous  session  there 
had  not  been  time  enough  for  a  full  inquiry  into  his 
conduct.  "Unwilling  to  leave  the  matter  on  such  a 
footing,  I  have  concluded  to  request  the  House  of 
Representatives,  as  I  now  do,  that  a  new  inquiry 
may  be,  without  delay,  instituted  in  some  mode, 
most  effectual  for  an  accurate  and  thorough  investi 
gation;  and  I  will  add,  that  the  more  comprehensive 
it  is,  the  more  agreeable  it  will  be  to  me."  Giles 
promptly  took  up  the  challenge  and  moved  the  ap 
pointment  of  a  committee  to  examine  the  condition 
of  the  Treasury  Department  in  all  its  particulars. 

Pending  action  by  the  House,  Hamilton's  ene 
mies  got  hold  of  a  discharged  clerk  of  the  Treasury 
Department,  with  whose  aid  a  new  line  of  attack 
was  opened.  A  memorial  from  Andrew  G.  Fraunces 
was  laid  before  the  House  making  charges  to  the 
effect  that  the  payment  of  warrants  had  been  de 
layed  so  that  they  could  be  bought  up  by  speculators 
at  a  discount.  Hamilton's  request  for  an  investiga 
tion  was  allowed  to  lie  on  the  table,  while  publicity 
was  given  to  Fraunces's  tale  and  arrangements  were 
made  for  proceeding  with  it  by  a  select  committee. 
Giles  was  a  member,  a  circumstance  which  turned 
out  to  be  to  Hamilton's  advantage,  for,  although 


RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE        295 

Giles  was  a  hard,  bold,  resolute  fighter,  he  was  an 
erect  and  manly  foe.  He  did  not  stab  in  the  dark 
and  he  did  not  use  poisoned  weapons.  When  he 
looked  into  Fraunces's  character  and  into  the  testi 
mony  that  was  offered  he  could  not  stomach  either 
and  he  concurred  in  a  report  on  Hamilton,  finding 
that  the  evidence  was  "fully  sufficient  to  justify 
his  conduct;  and  that  in  the  whole  course  of  this 
transaction  the  Secretary  and  other  officers  of  the 
Treasury  have  acted  a  meritorious  part  towards  the 
public." 

Giles  still  pressed  his  motion  for  further  investi 
gation  of  the  Treasury  Department,  but  upon  differ 
ent  grounds  from  what  he  had  urged  before.  Now 
he  admitted  that  imputations  upon  the  Secretary's 
integrity  had  been  quite  removed,  and  he  held  that 
"the  primary  object  of  the  resolution  is  to  ascertain 
the  boundaries  of  discretion  and  authority  between 
the  Legislature  and  the  Treasury  Department." 
But  by  this  time  the  House  was  sick  of  the  whole 
business.  The  original  purpose  had  been  to  force 
Hamilton  out  of  office  so  as  to  leave  Jefferson  with 
an  undisputed  premiership  in  Washington's  Cabinet, 
but  Jefferson  quit  on  December  31,  1793,  while  this 
matter  was  pending,  and  doubtless  it  was  known  that 
Hamilton  too  was  going.  Doubtless  it  was  also 
known  that  Washington  was  sorry  that  he  had  con 
sented  to  re-election  and  that  he,  too,  would  have 
been  glad  to  resign  if  he  could.  The  attack  upon 


296  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Hamilton  had  been  a  complete  failure;  everybody 
knew  that.  All  that  remained  of  it  was  a  proposal 
that  the  House  should  engage  in  vague  schemes  of 
departmental  regulation  which  after  all  would  not 
touch  Hamilton  but  would  descend  upon  his  succes 
sor,  who  might  even  be  one  of  their  own  set.  The 
House  became  so  reluctant  to  proceed  with  the  busi 
ness  that  when  it  came  up,  February  24,  1794,  Giles 
and  Page  were  the  only  speakers  and  both  dis 
claimed  any  intention  of  reflecting  upon  Hamilton. 
The  House  rid  itself  of  the  matter  by  referring  it  to 
a  committee.  It  was  perfectly  well  understood 
that  this  was  simply  a  decent  burial;  and  that  was 
the  end. 

Hamilton  had  once  more  defeated  his  enemies, 
and  might  now  have  marched  out  with  all  the  honors 
of  the  victor  on  a  hard-fought  field;  but  conditions 
of  such  peril  to  the  Government  had  now  been  de 
veloped  that  he  was  unwilling  to  leave  until  he  had 
removed  them.  One  of  the  counts  of  Jefferson's 
indictment  of  Hamilton's  policy  was  that  the  excise 
law  was  "of  odious  character  .  .  .  committing  the 
authority  of  the  Government  in  parts  where  resist 
ance  is  most  probable  and  coercion  least  practicable. " 
The  parts  thus  referred  to  were  the  mountains  of 
western  Pennsylvania,  where  popular  discontent 
promptly  coalesced  with  the  agitation  carried  on 
against  Washington's  neutrality  policy.  At  a  meet 
ing  of  delegates  from  the  election  districts  of  Alle- 


RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE        297 

gheny  County,  held  at  Pittsburgh,  resolutions  were 
adopted  attributing  the  course  of  the  Government 
"to  the  pernicious  influence  of  stockholders/'  and 
declaring  "that  we  are  almost  ready  to  wish  for  a 
state  of  revolution  and  the  guillotine  of  France,  for 
a  short  space,  in  order  to  inflict  punishment  on  the 
miscreants  that  enervate  and  disgrace  our  Govern 
ment."  In  the  summer  of  1794  this  state  of  mind 
had  produced  its  natural  consequence  in  open  in 
surrection.  Writing  to  Governor  Lee,  of  Virginia, 
Washington  said  that  he  considered  "this  insurrec 
tion  as  the  first  formidable  fruit  of  the  Democratic 
Societies." 

It  was  not  in  Hamilton's  nature  to  retire  from  office 
in  the  presence  of  such  a  situation.  Writing  to 
Washington,  May  27,  1794,  he  said:  "I  some  time 
since  communicated  an  intention  to  withdraw  from 
the  office  I  hold,  towards  the  close  of  the  present 
session.  This  I  should  now  put  in  execution  but 
for  the  events  which  have  lately  accumulated,  of  a 
nature  to  render  the  prospects  of  the  continuance  of 
our  peace  in  a  considerable  degree  precarious.  I  do 
not  perceive  that  I  could  voluntarily  quit  my  post 
at  such  a  juncture  consistently  with  considerations 
either  of  duty  or  character;  and  therefore  I  find 
myself  reluctantly  obliged  to  defer  the  offer  of  my 
resignation." 

The  letter  went  on  to  say  that  if  Washington  had 
meanwhile  made  other  arrangements  he  would  be 


298  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

glad  "to  relinquish  a  situation  opposed  by  the 
strongest  personal  and  family  relations,  and  in 
which  even  a  momentary  stay  could  only  be  pro 
duced  by  a  sense  of  duty  or  reputation."  But 
Washington  was  delighted  to  have  him  stay  on, 
and  at  once  wrote:  "I  am  pleased  that  you  have 
determined  to  remain  at  your  post  until  the  clouds 
over  our  affairs,  which  have  come  on  so  fast  of 
late,  shall  be  dispersed." 

Although  what  has  passed  into  history  as  the 
Whiskey  Insurrection  had  now  assumed  a  character 
that  would  have  naturally  brought  it  under  the  War 
Department,  Washington  left  the  arrangements  to 
Hamilton.  The  principle  on  which  Hamilton  acted 
was  that  the  force  employed  ought  "to  be  an  im 
posing  one,  such,  if  practicable,  as  will  deter  from 
opposition,  save  the  effusion  of  the  blood  of  the 
citizens,  and  serve  the  object  to  be  accomplished." 
All  the  members  of  the  Cabinet  concurred  in  Hamil 
ton's  opinion  except  Attorney-General  Randolph, 
who  abounded  in  objection,  protest,  and  warning. 
Hamilton's  plans  called  for  a  force  of  12,000  men, 
of  whom  3,000  were  to  be  cavalry.  Some  appear 
ance  of  timidity  and  inertia  in  Pennsylvania  State 
authority  was  effectually  counteracted  by  measures 
which  showed  that  the  expedition  would  move  even 
if  Pennsylvania  held  back.  The  business  was  so 
shrewdly  managed  that  without  any  direct  pressure 
Pennsylvania  fell  obediently  into  line,  and  every- 


RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE        299 

thing  went  off  as  Hamilton  had  planned.  The 
insurgents  were  so  cowed  by  the  determined  action 
of  the  Government  that  they  submitted  without  a 
struggle. 

Since  it  is  in  the  nature  of  precaution  that  the 
more  successful  it  is  the  less  necessary  it  appears 
to  have  been,  the  completeness  of  Hamilton's  suc 
cess  furnished  his  enemies  with  a  new  cry  against 
him,  and  his  costly  military  expedition  that  had  no 
fighting  to  do  was  held  up  to  public  ridicule.  But 
the  truth  is  that  any  failure  might  have  been  fatal 
to  the  Government.  Randolph  was  in  a  state  of 
panic.  Fauchet,  the  French  minister,  reported 
him  as  overcome  with  grief,  declaring:  "It  is  all 
over;  a  civil  war  is  about  to  ravage  our  unhappy 
country."  He  applied  to  Fauchet  for  financial 
assistance;  the  fact  was  made  public  through  the 
capture  of  Fauchet's  correspondence  by  the  British 
and  Randolph  retired  from  the  Cabinet  under  a 
cloud. 

Hamilton  now  felt  free  to  press  his  own  resigna 
tion,  but  not  until  any  official  desire  to  investigate 
his  conduct  had  been  fully  satisfied.  Under  date 
of  December  1,  1794,  he  wrote  to  the  Speaker  of 
the  House  that  he  had  arranged  with  the  President 
to  resign  his  office  on  January  31,  adding:  "I  make 
this  communication  in  order  that  an  opportunity 
may  be  given,  previous  to  that  event,  to  institute  any 
further  proceeding  which  may  be  contemplated,  if 


300  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

any  there  be,  in  consequence  of  the  inquiry  during 
the  last  session  into  the  state  of  this  Department." 
No  notice  was  taken  of  this  communication  and 
Hamilton  took  no  further  notice  of  the  attitude  of 
the  House,  which  had  certainly  placed  itself  in  an 
undignified  position  by  its  failure  to  take  decisive 
action  in  one  way  or  another  on  Giles's  resolution. 
Hamilton  addressed  to  the  Senate  his  final  report 
on  the  public  credit.  On  January  16, 1795,  he  wrote 
that  he  had  "prepared  a  plan,  on  the  basis  of  actual 
revenues,  for  the  further  support  of  public  credit, 
which  is  ready  for  communication  to  the  Senate.7' 
The  body  promptly  called  for  it  and  it  was  trans 
mitted  on  January  20.  It  is  a  masterly  examination 
of  the  whole  field  of  national  finance,  presented  with 
such  clearness,  order,  dignity,  and  power  that  it 
ranks  among  the  greatest  of  Hamilton's  state  papers. 
In  addition  to  preparing  this  long  and  comprehensive 
report,  in  the  midst  of  his  arrangements  for  de 
parture,  he  also  made  a  much  briefer  report  to  the 
House  of  Representatives,  making  some  valuable 
suggestions  for  the  improvement  of  the  revenue.  He 
finished  this  on  the  day  his  resignation  took  effect, 
and  by  the  time  it  reached  the  House  he  was  no 
longer  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  He  had  laid 
down  the  office  in  which  he  had  established  a  new 
nation  upon  firm  foundations. 


CHAPTER  XXI 
PRIVATE  DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS 

IN  considering  the  later  events  of  Hamilton's  career, 
it  is  apt  to  occur  to  one  how  much  better  it  would 
have  been  for  his  reputation  had  he  had  nothing  more 
to  do  with  political  management  after  quitting  public 
life.  From  now  on  one  must  observe  a  lowering  of 
his  standard  of  behavior,  a  tolerance  of  methods  and 
practices  which  once  he  would  have  scorned  and 
which  he  admitted  now,  not  through  change  of 
opinion  as  to  their  character,  but  through  calcula 
tions  of  party  advantage.  But  upon  a  broad  view 
of  the  situation  it  is  clear  that  it  was  practically  im 
possible  for  him  to  disengage  himself  from  politics. 
He  was  still  a  young  man — only  thirty-eight  when  he 
resigned  the  Treasury  portfolio.  His  advice  was 
sought  continually,  and  situations  developed  that 
made  irresistible  appeals  to  his  sense  of  public 
duty.  The  blemish  to  his  reputation  is  not  in  that 
his  public  activity  continued  but  in  that  he  allowed 
it  to  produce  a  system  of  private  direction  of  public 
affairs  incompatible  with  any  sort  of  constitutional 
government.  Occasion  and  opportunity  for  such 
tactics  had  been  supplied  by  the  behavior  of  Con 
gress  in  disconnecting  itself  from  the  Administration, 

301 


302  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

thus  insuring  its  own  subjection  to  outside  influence 
covertly  exerted.  The  conditions  thus  created  ex 
plain  Hamilton's  behavior,  but  do  not  justify  it. 
His  proper  function  was  to  rectify  conditions,  not 
to  yield  to  them;  and  in  so  doing  the  great  states 
man  declined  into  the  intriguing  politician,  a  char 
acter  poorly  suited  to  one  of  his  frank  disposition. 

To  this  part  of  his  career,  however,  belongs  as 
brilliant  an  achievement  in  public  sendee  as  any  per 
formed  by  him.  In  June,  1795,  the  Jay  treaty  was 
ratified  by  the  Senate  with  the  exception  of  an  article 
relating  to  trade  with  the  West  Indies,  an  omission 
to  which  the  British  Government  in  the  end  made 
no  objection.  The  Senate  had  decided  to  keep  the 
treaty  a  secret,  but  one  of  the  members  furnished  a 
copy  to  the  opposition  press  and  at  once  furious  de 
nunciation  of  it  began.  Up  to  this  time  Washington 
had  acted  in  a  routine  way,  contenting  himself  with 
a  reference  of  the  matter  to  the  Senate,  but  the  con 
ditional  ratification  and  the  outburst  of  popular 
disapproval  raised  questions  which  perplexed  him. 
He  applied  to  Hamilton  for  his  opinion,  saying:  "  My 
wishes  are  to  have  the  favorable  and  unfavorable 
side  of  each  article  stated  and  compared  together; 
that  I  may  see  the  bearing  and  tendency  of  them." 

Hamilton's  reply,  written  in  New  York,  is  dated 
only  six  days  later  than  the  date  of  Washington's 
letter  written  at  Philadelphia,  so  his  analysis  must 
have  been  the  work  of  a  few  days,  but  nevertheless 


DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS    303 

it  is  an  elaborate  and  comprehensive  examination 
of  a  complicated  case.  He  condemned  the  article 
relating  to  West  Indian  trade  and  approved  the 
action  of  the  Senate  in  rejecting  it,  but  on  the  whole 
his  judgment  was  strongly  in  favor  of  accepting  the 
treaty  as  thus  modified.  Washington  was  very 
grateful,  and  in  returning  his  thanks  said:  "I  am 
really  ashamed  when  I  behold  the  trouble  it  has 
given  you,  to  explore  and  explain  so  fully  as  you 
have  done." 

At  this  time  Jefferson  was  active  in  encouraging 
attacks  upon  the  Administration.  He  held  that  the 
treaty  was  an  "execrable  thing,"  an  "infamous  act, 
which  is  really  nothing  more  than  a  treaty  of  alliance 
between  England  and  the  Anglo-men  of  this  country 
against  the  Legislature  and  the  people  of  the  United 
States."  Meetings  were  held  all  over  the  coun 
try  at  which  the  most  violent  language  was  used. 
In  Philadelphia,  on  the  4th  of  July,  there  was  a 
parade  in  which  an  effigy  of  John  Jay,  bearing  in 
sulting  inscriptions,  was  borne  through  the  streets 
and  then  publicly  burned.  In  New  York  a  mob 
gathered  in  Wall  Street  to  denounce  the  treaty. 
Hamilton  made  an  attempt  to  address  them  from 
the  balcony  of  Federal  Hall  but  was  met  by  a 
shower  of  stones.  "These  are  hard  arguments  to 
encounter/'  he  remarked  with  a  smile  as  he  retired. 
The  mob  marched  to  Bowling  Green  and  burned  a 
copy  of  the  treaty  in  front  of  Jay's  official  residence 


304  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

as  Governor  of  New  York,  an  office  to  which  he 
had  been  elected  before  the  treaty  was  published. 
Many  prominent  citizens  took  part  in  these  dem 
onstrations.  Brockholst  Livingston,  Mrs.  Jay's 
brother,  acted  as  chairman  of  a  committee  which  re 
ported  twenty-eight  resolutions  of  particular  cen 
sure. 

As  a  matter  of  fact  Jay  had  performed  a  difficult 
task  with  great  tact  and  skill.  The  Administration 
was  in  a  poor  position  for  obtaining  any  favor  from 
the  British  Government,  for  under  the  impotent 
government  of  the  Confederation  the  various  States 
had  contemptuously  ignored  the  stipulations  of  the 
peace  treaty  in  behalf  of  British  creditors.  While 
Jay  was  secretary  of  foreign  affairs  he  had  advised 
the  Continental  Congress  that  our  treaty  engage 
ments  with  Great  Britain  "have  been  constantly 
violated  on  our  part  by  legislative  acts,  then  and  still 
existing  and  operating,"  and  that  the  British  Govern 
ment  could  not  therefore  be  blamed  for  delaying  the 
surrender  of  the  western  posts  until  the  United 
States  had  shown  themselves  able  and  willing  to 
fulfil  their  own  obligations  under  the  treaty.  Col 
lisions  had  begun  on  the  western  frontier  and  the 
two  countries  were  plainly  drifting  into  war,  when 
Washington  decided  to  send  a  special  envoy  to  deal 
with  all  the  points  at  issue.  Washington's  original 
intention  had  been  to  send  Hamilton,  but  was  warned 
that  the  Senate  would  not  ratify  the  appointment, 


DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS    305 

and  Hamilton  himself  proposed  Jay  as  the  fittest 
man  for  the  task.  Jay  could  have  offered  a  plausible 
excuse  for  declining,  as  he  was  at  that  time  chief 
justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  he  showed  a  fine 
patriotism  in  accepting.  He  remarked  to  friends 
that  the  circumstances  were  such  that  no  man  could 
frame  a  treaty  with  Great  Britain  without  making 
himself  odious  to  popular  sentiment,  and  he  accepted 
the  mission  under  "a  conviction  that  to  refuse  it 
would  be  to  desert  my  duty  for  the  sake  of  my  ease, 
and  domestic  concerns  and  comforts."  Of  course, 
every  treaty  made  by  voluntary  agreement  must  be 
arrived  at  on  the  principle  of  give  and  take,  but 
popular  sentiment  in  the  United  States  had  not  yet 
been  educated  up  to  appreciation  of  the  fact  that 
independence  brought  loss  as  well  as  gain.  The 
general  feeling  seems  to  have  been  that  now  that 
the  war  was  over  things  would  go  on  as  before  in 
;.  matters  of  commerce  and  navigation;  and  there  was 
great  indignation  that  they  should  now  be  denied 
rights  and  opportunities  they  had  enjoyed  as  British 
subjects.  Their  mood  was  strong  for  taking  but 
not  for  giving,  and,  although  Jay  had  really  been 
remarkably  successful  in  making  gains,  these  of 
course  fell  short  of  the  public  desire,  while  the  con 
cessions  he  had  had  to  make  were  regarded  as  mon 
strous. 

Popular  sentiment  ran  so  strongly  against  the 
treaty  that  Washington  was  much  perturbed,  and 


306  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ii  one  of  his  letters  to  Hamilton  he  spoke  of  the 
pleasure  he  had  felt  on  reading  a  newspaper  article 
in  which  one  "Camillas"  announced  his  intention 
of  discussing  the  treaty  in  a  series  of  communications. 
"To  judge  of  this  work;"  wrote  Washington,  "from 
the  first  number  I  have  seen,  I  augur  well  of  the 
performance  and  shall  expect  to  see  the  subject  han 
dled  in  a  clear,  distinct,  and  satisfactory  manner." 
Washington's  hope  was  abundantly  fulfilled,  for 
"Camillus"  was  none  other  than  Hamilton  himself. 
Once  again  he  had  come  forward  to  face  and  subdue 
the  passions  of  the  hour  by  sheer  intellectual  might. 
The  Camillus  series  began  on  July  22,  1795,  and 
were  continued  well  into  the  following  year,  ending 
with  the  thirty-eighth  number.  They  form  a  mas 
terly  treatise  upon  the  foreign  relations  of  nations 
and  the  nature  of  international  law,  and  in  dignity 
of  style,  force  of  reasoning,  and  breadth  of  vision  the 
successive  numbers  are  worthy  of  ranking  with  The 
Federalist  series.  The  power  and  ability  displayed 
had  a  marked  effect  in  bearing  down  the  opposition 
and  effecting  a  conversion  of  opinion.  It  was  in 
reference  to  this  series  that  Jefferson  declared  that 
"Hamilton  was  a  Colossus  to  the  Anti-Republican 
party,"  and  he  implored  Madison  to  take  the  field 
against  him.  Madison  prudently  declined,  but 
what  controversial  ability  Jefferson's  followers  could 
produce  was  massed  against  Hamilton.  He  wisely 
refrained  from  any  rejoinder  in  his  Camillus  series, 


DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS    307 

which  keeps  to  high  ground  throughout;  but  to  deal 
with  particular  antagonists  he  carried  on  another 
series  over  the  signature  "Philo-Camillus,"  driving 
them  one  after  another  from  the  field.  Hamilton's 
course  during  the  agitation  over  the  Jay  treaty  is  a 
marvellous  exhibition  of  sustained  intellectual  power, 
and  it  should  not  be  forgotten  that  he  who  did  this 
mighty  work  had  to  snatch  the  time  for  it  from  his 
occupation  as  a  lawyer,  on  which  he  was  wholly  de 
pendent  for  the  support  of  his  family.  Had  it  not 
been  for  his  intervention,  the  House  of  Representa 
tives  might  have  broken  the  treaty.  As  it  was  there 
was  a  violent  struggle,  during  which  Madison  and 
Giles  argued  against  the  treaty,  but  in  the  end  the 
House  stood  fifty-one  to  forty-eight  in  favor  of  giving 
effect  to  it. 

During  the  struggle  Washington  kept  in  close 
touch  with  Hamilton,  looking  to  him  for  help  that 
was  bounteously  given.  Not  long  after  this  matter 
had  been  concluded  Washington  again  sought  Hamil 
ton's  help  on  a  matter  he  had  much  to  heart — the 
composition  of  a  dignified  and  appropriate  address 
to  announce  his  retirement  to  private  life.  This 
Farewell  Address,  to  give  it  the  name  it  has  always 
since  borne,  was  not  addressed  to  Congress  but  to 
his  countrymen,  to  let  it  be  known  that  he  refused 
to  be  a  candidate  for  re-election.  The  address 
occupied  much  of  Washington's  attention  during 
the  summer  of  1796.  In  1792,  when  Washington 


308  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

thought  of  declining  a  second  term,  he  got  Madison 
to  prepare  an  address  making  that  announcement. 
This  draft,  with  notes  and  suggestions,  Washing 
ton  now  transmitted  to  Hamilton.  Hamilton,  how 
ever,  prepared  an  entirely  new  address,  the  first 
draft  of  which  was  an  abstract  of  points  to  be  made, 
twenty-three  in  number.  Later,  after  a  conference 
with  Jay  in  which  the  Madison  draft  and  Washing 
ton's  notes  on  it  were  considered,  Hamilton  prepared 
a  paper  of  changes  and  corrections,  in  effect  consti 
tuting  an  alternative  draft.  Washington,  however, 
preferred  Hamilton's  original  draft,  and  upon  that, 
with  Washington's  notes,  suggestions,  and  correc 
tions,  the  address  was  formed  in  the  shape  in  which 
it  was  finally  issued.  Washington's  OWTI  ideas  con 
trolled  the  substance;  the  literary  form  was  sup 
plied  by  Hamilton.  In  addition  Hamilton  drafted 
an  important  part  of  Washington's  address  to  Con 
gress  at  the  opening  of  the  session,  December,  1796. 
But  while  Hamilton  was  engaged  in  these  high  and 
noble  activities  he  was  also  dipping  into  the  mean 
puddles  of  journalism,  not  without  an  occasional 
splash  from  their  mud.  He  began  to  write  for  the 
newspapers  while  a  college  boy  and  he  kept  on  doing 
so  the  rest  of  his  life.  The  many  journals  that  ap 
peared  from  time  to  time  in  the  Federalist  party 
interest  received  help  from  his  pen,  and  the  volumes 
now  required  for  his  acknowledged  writings  would  be 
much  swollen  had  all  his  fugitive  pieces  been  pre- 


DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS    309 

served.  William  Cobbett,  who  wrote  under  the 
pseudonym  of  "Peter  Porcupine/' — a  name  which 
fitly  characterizes  his  barbed  style — was  assisted 
by  Hamilton  in  establishing  his  Weekly  Political 
Register — which  appeared  from  1794  to  1800,  when, 
broken  by  libel  suits,  Cobbett  quit  the  fray,  returning 
to  England  to  continue  there  his  tempestuous  career. 
In  1801  Hamilton,  in  conjunction  with  several  promi 
nent  Federalists,  established  the  New  York  Evening 
Post,  one  of  the  few  journals  of  the  period  that  be 
came  a  permanent  institution.  Hamilton's  con 
nection  with  The  Post  was  so  close  that  all  its  feuds 
were  scored  against  him,  and  he  was  a  frequent 
contributor.  The  editor  was  William  Coleman,  a 
clever  lawyer  who  for  a  short  time  was  a  partner  of 
Aaron  Burr.  Coleman  made  no  secret  of  the  fact 
that  the  paper  acted  in  Hamilton's  interest,  but  he 
once  told  a  friend  that  Hamilton  never  actually 
wrote  a  word  for  it,  then  adding,  "Whenever  any 
thing  occurs  on  which  I  feel  the  need  of  information 
I  state  the  matter  to  him,  sometimes  in  a  note;  he 
appoints  a  time  when  I  may  see  him,  usually  a  late 
hour  of  the  evening.  He  always  keeps  himself  mi 
nutely  informed  on  all  political  matters.  As  soon 
as  I  see  him  he  begins  in  a  deliberate  manner  to 
dictate  and  I  note  down  in  shorthand;  when  he 
stops,  my  article  is  completed." 

Hamilton's  newspaper  connections  gave  provoca 
tions  that  imparted  special  venom  to  the  scurrilous 


310  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

attacks  of  which  he  was  a  perpetual  target.  He 
would  never  reply  in  his  own  person  unless  some 
charge  was  made  against  his  personal  integrity;  on 
which  he  was  as  sensitive  as  a  good  woman  is  to 
her  reputation  for  chastity.  Then  he  would  strike 
back  at  once  and  strike  hard.  In  November,  1799, 
he  had  the  foreman  of  a  New  York  paper  indicted  for 
libel,  and  the  defendant  was  fined  $100  and  sent  to 
prison  for  four  months. 

To  Hamilton's  susceptibility  on  this  point  is  due 
a  disclosure  that  has  made  a  nasty  stain  upon  his 
reputation.  Charges  of  the  same  kind  spattered 
many  of  the  leading  men  of  the  times.  Jefferson 
was  among  those  who  suffered  from  them,  but  he 
wisely  forebore  to  reply.  The  circumstances  which 
involved  Hamilton  in  open  scandal  display  the  mean 
ness  to  which  partisanship  can  stoop  more  than  all 
other  events  in  American  political  history,  dirty  as 
is  its  record  in  matters  of  this  sort.  In  1792  two 
men,  Clingman  and  Reynolds,  were  arrested  for 
subornation  of  perjury  in  attempts  to  obtain  money 
on  a  claim  against  the  Government.  Speaker  Muhl- 
enburg,  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  interested 
himself  in  Clingman's  behalf  and  was  told  by  him 
that  Reynolds  had  a  hold  on  Hamilton.  Muhlen- 
burg  who  was  one  of  Jefferson's  adherents,  told 
Abraham  Venable  and  James  Monroe.  The  three 
conferred  with  Reynolds  and  his  wife,  and  obtained 
some  papers  attributed  to  Hamilton,  which,  insignif- 


DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS    311 

icant  in  themselves,  were  exhibited  as  evidence 
corroborating  a  charge  that  Hamilton  had  been  con 
cerned  with  Reynolds  in  buying  up  old  claims  against 
the  Government.  The  three  then  confronted  Hamil 
ton,  who  frankly  avowed  that  he  had  had  an  in 
trigue  with  Mrs.  Reynolds,  and  then  showed  con 
clusively  that  the  charges  they  were  investigating 
were  wholly  the  product  of  malicious  fabrication. 
The  inquirers  professed  to  be  entirely  satisfied  by 
the  explanations  made,  and  the  matter  was  then 
dropped,  but  Monroe  kept  copies  of  all  the  papers, 
with  records  of  statements  made  by  Clingman  and 
Reynolds,  which  he  turned  over  to  one  of  his  politi 
cal  intimates,  who  some  years  later  gave  a  partisan 
journalist  the  use  of  them. 

The  charges  were  made  public  in  1797.  Hamil 
ton  at  once  called  upon  the  investigators  of  1792 
to  make  a  statement  of  their  findings.  Both 
Muhlenburg  and  Venable  complied,  to  Hamilton's 
satisfaction.  Monroe  quibbled  and  dodged,  until 
Hamilton  denounced  his  conduct  as  malevolent  and 
dishonorable,  adding  that  if  he  resented  the  charac 
terization  a  challenge  from  him  would  be  accepted; 
but  Monroe  refrained.  Monroe  seems  to  have  be 
lieved  that  he  had  Hamilton  in  such  a  fix  that  he 
could  not  move  further  in  the  business,  but  it  was 
not  in  him  to  know  what  such  a  man  as  Hamilton 
would  do.  There  was  no  shame,  no  disgrace,  that 
he  would  not  endure  rather  than  rest  under  any 


312  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

charge  against  his  integrity.  So  he  came  out  with 
the  whole  wretched  business,  telling  in  complete 
detail  the  story  of  his  relations  with  Mrs.  Reynolds. 
It  was  the  old  story — a  woman  who  came  with  a 
sad  tale  to  get  a  personal  interview  and  who  made 
use  of  the  opportunity  to  get  a  new  protector.  Both 
she  and  her  husband  worked  the  affair  for  all  they 
could  get  out  of  it.  Hamilton  told  the  whole  story, 
appending  all  letters,  papers,  and  documents  having 
any  connection  with  it,  fifty-two  in  number,  the 
whole  making  a  bulky  pamphlet.  In  it  Hamilton 
quite  justly  observed  that  his  desire  to  destroy  this 
scandal  completely  led  him  to  a  more  copious  and 
particular  examination  of  it  than  was  really  neces 
sary,  and  every  one  must  agree  to  his  summing  up 
of  the  case : 

The  bare  perusal  of  the  letters  from  Reynolds  and  his 
wife  is  sufficient  to  convince  my  greatest  enemy  that  there 
is  nothing  worse  in  the  affair  than  an  irregular  and  in 
delicate  amour.  For  this,  I  bow  to  the  just  censure 
which  it  merits.  I  have  paid  pretty  severely  for  the  folly, 
and  can  never  recollect  it  without  disgust  and  self-con 
demnation.  It  might  seem  affectation  to  say  more. 

The  Reynolds  pamphlet,  while  it  will  always  pre 
clude  in  Hamilton's  case  the  mythic  veneration  that 
has  collected  about  some  politicians  of  that  period 
who  were  really  shabby  fellows,  did  have  the  effect 
of  stamping  out  for  good  and  all  slander  as  to  Hamil 
ton's  honesty.  The  manliness  with  which  he  had 


DIRECTION  OF  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS    313 

faced  every  accusation  affected  even  inveterate 
enemies.  It  was  a  significant  mark  of  esteem  when 
in  April,  1798,  the  high-minded  statesman,  Governor 
Jay,  asked  Hamilton's  permission  to  appoint  him 
United  States  Senator  to  fill  a  vacancy  that  had 
occurred.  Hamilton  replied  that  his  situation 
obliged  him  to  decline  the  appointment,  adding: 
''There  may  arrive  a  crisis  when  I  may  conceive 
myself  bound  once  more  to  sacrifice  the  interests  of 
my  family  to  public  call.  But  I  must  defer  the 
change  as  long  as  possible." 

The  situation  in  which  Hamilton  stood  at  that 
time  forbade  the  acceptance  of  any  post  that  would 
interfere  with  his  legal  practice.  On  returning  to 
New  York  after  leaving  Washington's  Cabinet,  he 
took  a  small  house  at  56  Pine  Street,  later  removing 
to  58  Partition  Street  (now  Fulton  Street),  thence 
to  Liberty  Street,  near  Broadway,  and  thence  to 
26  Broadway,  where  he  lived  until  1802.  In  1798, 
in  conjunction  with  his  brother-in-law  John  B. 
Church,  he  leased  a  country  house,  near  where  some 
years  later  he  acquired  a  tract  of  land  and  built  a 
house,  calling  the  place  "The  Grange/'  after  the 
name  of  the  ancestral  home  of  the  Hamiltons  in 
Scotland.  It  was  then  considered  to  be  far  out  in 
the  country.  The  house  he  built  is  still  preserved, 
but  it  has  been  removed  from  its  original  site, 
which  was  what  is  now  the  corner  of  142d  Street 
and  Tenth  Avenue.  His  home  plans  were  in  mind 


314  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

when  he  refused  Jay's  offer.  His  law  practice 
brought  him  about  $12,000  a  year,  then  reckoned 
a  large  income,  and  he  could  not  afford  the  loss  he 
would  have  sustained  by  attendance  in  Congress, 
then  about  to  shift  from  Philadelphia  to  Wash 
ington. 

But,  while  the  stress  of  these  circumstances  must 
be*  recognized,  a  situation  resulted  which  had  dire 
consequences.  Hamilton's  irresistible  vocation  for 
statesmanship  now  operated  under  conditions  that 
produced  an  extraordinary  system  of  cabal  and  in 
trigue  the  collapse  of  which  wrecked  the  Federalist 
party.  And  yet  it  is  scarcely  possible  to  mention 
a  particular  in  which  Hamilton  himself  was  in  the 
wrong.  Events  moved  with  the  inexorable  sequence 
of  a  Greek  tragedy,  individuals  seeming  to  be  the 
mere  counters  of  fate.  It  all  started  from  a  false 
situation  which  was  not  of  Hamilton's  creation. 
Washington  had  virtually  forced  upon  him  the  office 
of  managing  director  of  the  Administration.  All  the 
members  of  the  Cabinet,  as  it  took  shape  in  Washing 
ton's  second  term,  looked  to  him  for  help  and  guid 
ance  in  every  important  emergency.  During  Wash 
ington's  time  the  relation  had  the  character  of  a 
frank  and  honorable  intimacy.  With  the  succession 
of  John  Adams  it  became  covert  and  secretive,  not 
by  direct  intention  but  by  gradual  acceptance  of  a 
false  situation. 


CHAPTER  XXII 
THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS 

ADAMS  and  Hamilton  felt  mutual  dislike,  dating 
from  the  time  when  Adams  was  prominent  among 
the  lawyer  politicians  who  got  control  of  the  Con 
tinental  Congress,  and  Hamilton  was  active  in  ad 
vocating  measures  to  repress  Congressional  jobbery 
and  mismanagement.  Adams  was  a  vain,  irascible, 
garrulous  pedant,  in  whose  nature  there  was  a 
mixture  of  habitual  effrontery  with  physical  timidity 
rarely  found  except  among  lawyers.  His  defects 
of  character  were  well  known  to  the  Federalist  lead 
ers,  who  from  the  outset  of  his  Administration  re 
garded  it  as  a  party  duty  to  humor  and  manage  him 
for  his  own  good.  Wolcott,  of  Connecticut,  wrote 
to  his  son,  Hamilton's  successor  in  the  Treasury  De 
partment,  that  Adams  was  "a  man  of  great  vanity, 
pretty  capricious,  of  a  very  moderate  share  of  pru 
dence,  and  of  far  less  real  abilities  than  he  believes 
himself  to  possess,"  so  that  "it  will  require  a  great 
deal  of  address  to  render  him  the  service  which  it  will 
be  essential  for  him  to  receive." 

Adams's  dislike  of  Hamilton  derived  additional 
bitterness  from  some  features  of  the  Presidential 
election  of  1796.  At  that  time  the  electors  each 

315 


316  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

voted  for  two  candidates  without  designating  who 
should  be  President  and  who  Vice-President. 
Thomas  Pinckney,  of  South  Carolina,  was  associated 
with  Adams  on  the  Federalist  ticket,  and  Hamilton 
recommended  both  to  the  solid  support  of  the  Feder 
alist  members  of  the  electoral  college.  But  Hamil 
ton  foresaw  that  Pinckney  would  receive  Southern 
votes  that  would  not  go  to  Adams,  and  that  if  both 
were  solidly  supported  in  the  North  Pinckney  would 
come  out  ahead  and  get  the  Presidency.  The  New 
York,  New  Jersey,  and  Delaware  electors  voted 
solidly  as  Hamilton  had  recommended,  but  South 
Carolina  voted  for  Jefferson  and  Pinckney,  and 
moreover  Pinckney  received  scattering  votes  else 
where  in  the  South,  which  would  have  insured  his 
election  had  he  received  the  solid  support  of  the 
Federalist  electors  in  New  England,  but  eighteen 
of  them  cut  Pinckney  to  make  sure  that  he  should 
not  slip  in  ahead  of  Adams,  with  the  result  of  elect 
ing  Jefferson  as  Vice-President.  Adams  received 
only  three  electoral  votes  more  than  Jefferson,  and 
for  the  narrowness  of  this  margin  he  blamed  Hamil 
ton,  who  was  certainly  in  no  way  responsible  for  it, 
although  he  had  anticipated  the  South  Carolina 
straddle,  and  had  made  plans  with  a  view  to  that 
occurrence.  On  the  other  hand,  Adams  felt  so 
kindly  toward  Jefferson,  his  old  Congressional  chum, 
that  expressions  of  satisfaction  over  Jefferson's  elec 
tion  instead  of  Pinckney 's  came  from  the  Adams  cir- 


THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS         317 

cle.  Jefferson  made  friendly  advances  to  Adams 
and  wrote  to  Madison  suggesting  that  "it  would  be 
worthy  of  consideration  whether  it  would  not  be 
to  the  public  good  to  come  to  a  good  understanding 
with  him  as  to  his  future  elections."  The  Federalist 
leaders  were  dismayed  on  hearing  that  Adams  was 
conferring  with  Jefferson  as  to  the  policy  of  the  Ad 
ministration  before  he  had  had  any  conference  with 
his  own  Cabinet. 

What  Adams  had  in  mind  was  not  a  bad  idea  had 
it  been  at  all  practicable.  He  thought  a  good  im 
pression  might  be  made  by  sending  a  mission  to 
France  of  exceptional  weight  and  dignity,  and  he 
wanted  Jefferson  to  go  as  its  head.  Jefferson  of 
course  declined;  but  was  suave  and  tactful  in  his 
refusal.  Adams  then  proposed  Madison,  and  Jef 
ferson  undertook  to  see  him  about  the  matter;  but 
soon  reported  that  Madison  too  felt  unable  to  ac 
cept  the  honor.  Then  at  last  Adams  decided  to 
confer  with  his  Cabinet,  whose  members  had  mean 
while  become  alarmed  at  his  behavior.  Adams  had 
taken  over  the  Cabinet  just  as  Washington  had  left 
it.  All  its  members  were  devoted  to  Hamilton  and 
were  accustomed  to  seek  his  advice.  They  all  be 
gan  writing  to  him,  telling  him  what  was  going  on 
and  asking  his  help  in  preparing  measures,  making 
Hamilton's  office  in  New  York  a  more  important 
administrative  centre  than  Adams's  own  office  at 
the  seat  of  government. 


318  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

There  is  no  sign  that  Hamilton  used  his  influence 
to  do  any  harm  to  Adams.  In  fact  he  cleared  the 
way  several  times  to  Adams's  advantage,  although 
Adams  did  not  know  it.  The  attitude  of  the  Cabinet 
was  decidedly  hostile  to  Adams's  pet  scheme  of  a 
special  mission  to  France.  It  was  Hamilton's  ad 
vice  that  secured  their  approval  of  the  project,  and 
he  also  brought  his  friends  in  the  Senate  to  its  sup 
port.  He  prepared  for  Secretary  Wolcott  a  scheme 
of  taxation  by  which  the  revenue  could  be  increased 
to  provide  for  national  defense,  and  he  prepared 
for  Secretary  McHenry,  of  the  War  Department,  a 
scheme  of  military  and  naval  preparations  which, 
though  it  was  not  adopted  in  its  entirety,  greatly 
augmented  the  resources  of  the  Administration  and 
was  the  most  important  factor  in  producing  more  re 
spectful  treatment  of  American  interests.  Although 
he  himself  became  a  major-general  in  the  army, 
Hamilton's  advice  was  strongly  in  favor  of  making 
the  navy  the  principal  arm  of  national  power.  The 
French  Government  had  characterized  the  Jay 
treaty  as  a  violation  of  American  engagements  with 
France  and  had  retaliated  by  seizing  American 
vessels,  confiscating  their  cargoes,  and  imprisoning 
hundreds  of  American  citizens.  Adams's  special 
mission  was  received  with  insult  and  accomplished 
nothing,  but  when  the  little  American  navy  got 
busy  results  followed  that  were  impressive.  During 
the  two  years  and  a  half  in  which  hostilities  con- 


THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS        319 

tinued  eighty-five  armed  ves  els  were  taken  and  only 
one  American  vessel  was  lost  in  action,  and  that 
one  had  been  originally  a  captured  French  vessel. 
Most  of  the  vessels  taken  were  privateers,  but  there 
were  two  hard-fought  actions  in  which  heavily 
armed  French  frigates  were  defeated.  The  value  of 
the  protection  given  to  American  commerce  was 
demonstrated  by  the  increase  of  exports  from  $57,- 
000,000  in  1797  to  $78,665,528  in  1799. 

Among  the  experiences  of  Adams's  special  mission 
was  a  notice  that  they  should  not  receive  a  friendly 
reception  unless  they  were  prepared  to  give  as  a 
"douceur  to  the  Directory ,"  a  sum  of  money  amount 
ing  to  about  $240,000.  The  story  of  this  affair  was 
told  in  the  famous  X  Y  Z  dispatches,  so  known 
from  the  letters  used  in  the  papers  laid  before  Con 
gress,  in  place  of  the  actual  names  of  Talleyrand's 
three  agents  in  pressing  the  demand.  A  wave  of 
indignation  swept  the  country,  and,  although  Jeffer 
son  argued  that  the  French  Government  ought  not 
to  be  held  responsible  for  "the  turpitude  of  swin 
dlers,"  his  party  in  Congress  was  soon  reduced  to  a 
feeble  and  dispirited  minority.  Among  the  mea 
sures  now  taken  was  one  authorizing  the  President 
to  raise  a  military  force  of  10,000  men,  the  com 
mander  of  which  should  have  the  services  of  "a 
suitable  number  of  major-generals."  There  was 
nothing  to  suggest  that  this  puny  measure  could 
supply  an  explosive  to  blow  up  the  Federalist  party, 


320  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

but  such  was  the  effect,  owing  to  Adams's  peculi 
arities. 

He  started  with  a  characteristic  bungle.  With 
out  any  inquiry  as  to  whether  the  appointment 
would  be  acceptable,  he  named  Washington  as  the 
commander.  When  the  news  reached  Hamilton 
he  was  much  surprised,  for  he  had  supposed  that 
every  public  man  knew  that  Washington  would  not 
endure  unceremonious  treatment.  He  wrote  at 
once  to  Washington  urging  him  to  overlook  the  im 
propriety  and  give  his  consent.  The  only  rational 
explanation  of  the  tortuous  course  which  Adams  now 
pursued  was  that  he  meant  to  get  the  use  of  Wash 
ington's  name  while  retaining  for  himself  actual  con 
trol  over  the  arrangements.  His  letters  plied  Wash 
ington  with  bland  assurances  and  vague  generalities. 
No  one  was  less  likely  to  be  caught  in  that  way  than 
one  of  Washington's  deliberate  and  methodical  habits 
of  action.  He  demanded  exact  stipulations  as  to 
his  powers,  including  the  right  to  appoint  his  major- 
generals.  Adams  avoided  committing  himself,  but 
he  instructed  Secretary  McHenry  to  obtain  Wash 
ington's  advice,  and  Washington  then  recommended 
as  major-generals  Hamilton,  C.  C.  Pinckney,  and 
Knox,  in  that  order  of  rank.  Adams  seemed  to 
assent  and  the  nominations  were  sent  to  the  Senate 
in  that  order,  but  as  soon  as  confirmation  took  place 
it  then  appeared  that  he  was  in  the  sulks.  He  left 
for  his  home  at  Quincy,  Massachusetts,  without 


THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS         321 

notice  to  his  Cabinet,  and  when  McHenry  wrote  to 
him  about  proceeding  with  the  organization  of  the 
army  he  replied  that  he  would  act  as  soon  as  Knox's 
precedence  was  acknowledged,  and  that  the  New 
England  States  would  not  submit  to  the  humiliation 
of  having  Knox's  claim  disregarded. 

From  August  4  to  October  13  wrangling  over  this 
matter  went  on.  Adams  wrote  to  Washington  that 
he  had  signed  the  commissions  on  the  same  day,  in 
the  hope  "that  an  amicable  adjustment  or  ac 
quiescence  might  take  place  among  the  gentlemen 
themselves";  but,  should  this  hope  be  disappointed 
"and  controversies  shall  arise,  they  will  of  course 
be  submitted  to  you  as  commander-in-chief." 
Adams  wrote  to  McHenry  that  "there  has  been  too 
much  intrigue  in  this  business,  both  for  General 
Washington  and  for  me";  that  it  might  as  well  be 
understood  that  in  any  event  he  would  have  the 
last  say,  "and  I  shall  then  determine  it  exactly  as 
I  should  now,  Knox,  Pinckney,  and  Hamilton." 

It  was  a  painful  feature  of  the  dispute  to  Hamilton 
that  it  put  his  interest  in  opposition  to  that  of 
Knox,  who  while  a  member  of  Washington's  Cabinet 
had  always  been  Hamilton's  firm  adherent.  Hamil 
ton  wrote  to  Washington  saying  that  Knox  indeed 
had  cause  for  complaint,  since  his  rank  in  the  old 
army  had  been  so  much  higher  than  Hamilton's  own 
rank.  To  McHenry  he  wrote:  "I  am  pained  to 
occasion  to  him  pain  for  I  have  truly  a  warm  side 


322  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

for  him,  and  a  high  value  for  his  merits;  but  my 
judgment  tells  me,  and  all  I  consult  confirm  it,  that 
I  cannot  reasonably  postpone  myself  in  a  case  in 
which  a  preference  so  important  to  the  public  in  its 
present  and  future  consequences  has  been  given 
me."  When  news  came  that  Knox  would  refuse  an 
appointment  that  put  him  lowest  in  rank,  Hamilton 
at  once  wrote  to  Washington,  saying  that  he  did 
not  want  to  be  the  occasion  of  any  embarrassment, 
and  adding:  "I  shall  cheerfully  place  myself  in 
your  disposal,  and  facilitate  any  arrangement  you 
may  think  for  the  general  good." 

But  Washington,  although  he  liked  Knox  per 
sonally,  was  determined  to  have  Hamilton  as  his 
chief  assistant,  and  with  good  reason.  Knox  was 
now  a  stout,  rubicund  veteran,  fond  of  jolly  company 
and  good  cheer,  wrhich  he  enjoyed  in  profusion  on 
the  country  estate  in  Maine  to  which  he  had  retired. 
The  importance  of  having  a  good  organizer  in  the 
principal  post  was  enhanced  by  the  fact  that  Sec 
retary  McHenry,  a  physician  by  profession,  had 
little  knowledge  of  military  affairs.  Washington 
himself,  when  he  made  the  appointment,  charac 
terized  it  as  "Hobson's  choice."  So  Washington 
insisted  on  his  right  to  use  his  own  judgment,  as  he 
had  distinctly  stipulated  from  the  first. 

For  months  the  deadlock  halted  action.  Adams 
was  obstinate;  Washington  was  immovable.  The 
suspense  finally  became  so  intolerable  that  the 


THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS        323 

Cabinet  acted  without  further  consultation  with  the 
President  about  the  matter.  Secretary  McHenry 
submitted  to  his  colleagues  all  the  correspondence  in 
the  case  and  asked  their  advice.  They  made  a 
joint  reply  that  "the  Secretary  of  War  ought  to 
transmit  the  commissions,  and  inform  the  generals 
that  in  his  opinion  the  rank  is  definitely  settled  ac 
cording  to  the  original  arrangement."  This  was 
done,  but  Knox  declined  an  appointment  ranking 
him  below  Hamilton  and  Pinckney,  although  Hamil 
ton  wrote  to  him  in  a  futile  attempt  to  soothe  his 
feelings.  The  letter  is  in  every  way  creditable  to 
Hamilton,  both  manly  and  tender,  without  any  trace 
of  insincerity  or  affectation.  It  was  with  entire  truth 
he  declared :  "  Be  persuaded  that  the  views  of  others, 
not  my  own,  have  given  shape  to  what  has  taken 
place,  and  that  there  has  been  a  serious  struggle  be 
tween  my  respect  and  attachment  for  you  and  the 
impression  of  duty." 

While  this  wretched  squabble  was  going  on  Hamil 
ton  was  trying  to  repress  the  spirit  of  arrogance  that 
now  possessed  the  Federalist  members  of  Congress. 
They  acted  as  if  their  heads  had  been  turned  by 
success,  and  they  enacted  some  imprudent  laws. 
The  period  of  residence  required  of  an  alien  before 
he  could  be  admitted  to  American  citizenship  was 
raised  from  five  years  to  fourteen.  The  President 
was  authorized  to  send  out  of  the  country  "such 
aliens  as  he  shall  judge  dangerous  to  the  peace  and 


324  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

safety  to  the  United  States."  The  state  of  public 
opinion  probably  sanctioned  these  measures,  but 
such  was  not  the  case  with  the  famous  sedition  act, 
which  made  it  a  crime  to  write  or  publish  "any  false, 
scandalous,  or  malicious  statements  about  the 
President  or  either  House  of  Congress."  As  soon  as 
Hamilton  heard  of  the  presentation  of  this  measure 
he  wrote  a  warning  letter  to  Secretary  Wolcott,  say 
ing:  "Let  us  not  establish  a  tyranny.  Energy  is  a 
very  different  thing  from  violence."  Later  on  he 
wrote  to  Senator  Sedgwick,  disapproving  of  the  act  as 
passed,  declaring  "it  seems  to  me  deficient  in  precau 
tions  against  abuse  and  for  the  security  of  citizens." 
The  result  verified  Hamilton's  prediction  to  Wolcott 
that  "if  we  push  things  to  an  extreme,  we  shall  then 
give  to  faction  body  and  solidity."  Just  that  thing 
happened.  The  alien  and  sedition  laws  gave  the 
Jeffersonian  party  an  issue  on  which  they  recovered 
their  lost  ground. 

In  communicating  the  X  Y  Z  dispatches  to 
Congress  Adams  declared:  "I  will  never  send  an 
other  Minister  to  France  without  assurance  that  he 
will  be  received,  respected,  and  honored,  as  the  rep 
resentative  of  a  great,  free,  powerful,  and  inde 
pendent  nation."  But  later  on  he  changed  his 
mind  and,  without  consulting  his  Cabinet,  he  nomi 
nated  a  minister  to  France.  This  unexpected  action 
stunned  the  Federalists  and  delighted  the  Jefferson- 
ians,  "Had  the  foulest  heart  and  the  ablest  head 


THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS        325 

in  the  world,"  wrote  Senator  Sedgwick  to  Hamilton, 
"been  permitted  to  select  the  most  embarrassing  and 
ruinous  measure,  perhaps  it  would  have  been  pre 
cisely  the  one  which  has  been  adopted."  Hamil 
ton's  mediation  now  again  made  a  smooth  course 
for  Adams.  While  he  thought  Adams  had  taken  an 
unwise  step,  he  advised  that  "the  measure  must  go 
into  effect  with  the  additional  idea  of  a  commission 
of  three."  The  matter  was  settled  in  this  way, 
much  to  Adams's  gratification.  By  the  time  the 
commission  reached  France,  Bonaparte  was  hi 
power.  The  envoys  were  decently  received  and 
were  able  to  make  an  acceptable  settlement  of  dif 
ferences  between  the  two  countries. 

As  the  Presidential  election  approached,  efforts, 
in  which  Hamilton  took  part,  were  made  to  find  a 
substitute  for  Adams  as  the  party  candidate,  but 
they  proved  unavailing,  as  New  England  still  clung 
to  Adams,  since  to  let  him  go  meant  the  loss  of  the 
Presidency  for  that  section.  There  was  some  talk 
of  bringing  out  Washington  again,  but  if  any  hopes 
were  really  entertained  in  that  quarter  they  were 
destroyed  by  his  death  on  December  14,  1799. 
When  word  of  these  proceedings  reached  Adams  the 
wrath  that  filled  his  bosom  ever  since  he  had  been 
baffled  in  the  matter  of  the  army  appointments 
now  boiled  over.  He  decided  to  rid  himself  of  men 
whom  he  characterized  as  "Hamilton's  spies." 
The  first  to  be  dismissed  was  McHenry,  on  May  5, 


326  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

1800,  after  an  interview  in  which — as  reported  by 
McHenry  himself — Adams  accused  him  of  having 
"biassed  General  Washington  to  place  Hamilton  in 
his  list  of  major-generals  before  Knox."  On  May 
12  Secretary  Pickering  of  the  State  Department 
was  dismissed.  Secretary  Wolcott  of  the  Treasury 
Department  stayed  on  until  the  end  of  the  year, 
when  he  resigned  of  his  own  motion.  In  thus  re 
constituting  his  Cabinet  Adams  was  entirely  within 
his  rights.  A  President  ought  to  have  as  his  ad 
visers  those  who  have  his  confidence  and  with  whom 
he  feels  disposed  to  confer,  and  Adams  would  have 
acted  wisely  if  he  had  selected  friends  of  his  own  at 
the  outset.  But  his  taking  such  action  in  the  midst 
of  a  Presidential  campaign  was  not  an  exercise  of 
good  judgment  but  was  an  outbreak  of  his  bad 
temper.  He  then  went  from  bad  to  worse  by  raging 
against  Hamilton,  and  the  style  of  his  remarks  may 
be  imagined  from  the  fact  that  years  after,  when  he 
had  had  plenty  of  time  to  cool  down,  he  referred  to 
Hamilton  as  the  " bastard  brat  of  a  Scotch  pedlar.'7 
Talk  of  this  sort  might  have  been  ignored  as  a  char 
acteristic  specimen  of  Adams's  behavior  when  in  a 
rage,  but  he  was  foolish  enough  to  attack  Hamilton's 
integrity  and  patriotism,  and  at  no  time  would 
Hamilton  submit  to  that.  When  news  came  that 
Adams  was  now  reiterating  the  old  calumnies, 
Hamilton  wrote  to  Adams  asking  whether  it  was 
true  that  Adams  had  "  asserted  the  existence  of  a 


THE  BREACH  WITH  ADAMS         327 

British  faction"  of  which  Hamilton  himself  was 
said  to  be  a  member.  Adams  made  no  reply. 
Hamilton  waited  for  two  months,  and  then  wrote 
again,  declaring  "that  by  whomsoever  a  charge  of 
the  kind  mentioned  in  my  former  letter,  may,  at 
any  time,  have  been  made  or  insinuated  against  me, 
it  is  a  base,  wicked,  and  cruel  calumny;  destitute 
even  of  a  plausible  pretext,  to  excuse  the  folly,  or 
mask  the  depravity  which  must  have  dictated  it." 
Even  this  sharp  language  did  not  move  Adams  to 
reply.  He  could  be  a  backbiter,  but  when  called 
to  account  he  took  refuge  in  obstinate  silence. 

Hamilton's  natural  indignation  now  led  him  to 
commit  a  great  political  blunder.  Since  he  had  de 
cided  to  support  Adams  as  his  party  candidate  his 
personal  grievance  should  have  been  subordinated 
to  his  sense  of  duty,  but  so  great  was  his  indignation 
that  his  feelings  escaped  control,  and  he  wrote  a 
scathing  analysis  of  "The  Public  Conduct  and  Char 
acter  of  John  Adams,"  for  distribution  among  a 
few  leading  Federalists.  Although  it  advised  sup 
port  of  Adams's  candidacy,  as  the  only  feasible 
course  in  existing  circumstances,  it  exhibited  him 
as  so  unfit  for  the  office  that  acceptance  of  him  could 
be  justified  only  as  a  choice  among  evils.  Aaron 
Burr  managed  to  get  hold  of  a  copy,  and  he  made 
such  use  of  portions  that  Hamilton  felt  obliged  to 
publish  it  in  full.  It  was  more  damaging  to  Hamil 
ton  himself  than  it  was  to  Adams,  for  Hamilton  had 


328  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

more  to  lose  in  reputation.  Even  Robert  Troup, 
Hamilton's  friend  from  boyhood,  wrote:  "The  in 
fluence  of  this  letter  upon  Hamilton's  character  is 
extremely  unfortunate.  An  opinion  has  grown  out 
of  it,  which  at  present  obtains  almost  universally, 
that  his  character  is  radically  deficient  in  discre 
tion.  Hence  he  is  considered  as  an  unfit  head  of 
the  party."  The  letter  did  not  really  affect  the 
result,  as  all  the  electors  chosen  in  the  Federalist- 
interest  voted  for  Adams,  and  a  Jeffersonian  ma 
jority  in  the  electoral  college  had  been  assured  by 
the  State  elections  in  Pennsylvania  and  New  York 
before  the  letter  appeared.  The  truth  of  the  matter 
is  that  the  result  of  the  Presidential  election  was  de 
cided  by  the  way  in  which  Aaron  Burr  had  previ 
ously  outgeneralled  and  defeated  Hamilton  in  New 
York. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR 

AARON  BURR'S  reputation  has  been  so  blackened, 
that  it  is  hard  to  view  the  man  as  he  really  was; 
but  one  may  get  a  just  exhibition  of  his  character 
from  Chesterfield's  Letters,  for  Burr  fully  realized 
the  ideal  therein  portrayed,  both  in  its  merit  and 
in  its  defect.  He  had  the  poise,  address,  polish, 
courage,  and  fortitude  of  the  type,  together  with  its 
self-centred  nature  and  epicurean  morality,  attained 
in  his  case  by  intellectual  emancipation  from  the 
tradition  which  he  had  inherited  from  an  eminent 
line  of  Puritan  ancestors.  Only  a  year  older  than 
Hamilton,  Burr  showed  almost  as  brilliant  capacity 
in  his  school-days,  and  in  1775,  about  the  same  time 
that  Hamilton  joined  the  Continental  Army  in  New 
York,  he  took  part  in  Benedict  Arnold's  march  on 
Quebec  as  a  volunteer.  In  that  unfortunate  ex 
pedition  Burr  showed  ability,  courage,  and  resource 
fulness  of  the  highest  order.  Returning  to  New 
York,  he  was  for  a  time  one  of  Washington's  aides, 
but  disliking  the  confinement  he  effected  a  transfer 
to  General  Putnam's  command  and  was  active  in 
the  battles  about  New  York  and  the  retreat  through 
New  Jersey.  In  1777  he  had  risen  to  the  rank  of 

329 


330  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

lieutenant-colonel,  and  was  in  actual  command  of  a 
regiment  detailed  for  scouting  duty  in  New  Jersey. 
It  was  while  thus  engaged  that  he  first  met  Mrs. 
Prevost,  the  widow  of  a  British  officer,  who  eventu 
ally  became  his  wife.  The  marriage,  which  took 
place  in  1782,  is  certainly  evidence  that  Burr  was 
capable  of  disinterested  attachment,  for  she  had 
neither  wealth,  position,  nor  beauty,  and  was  about 
ten  years  his  senior;  but  she  had  intelligence,  re 
finement,  and  charming  manners,  and  he  appears 
to  have  been  a  devoted  husband.  The  fact  that  his 
wife  was  an  English  woman  was  a  circumstance 
used  against  Burr  in  the  abominable  party  warfare 
of  the  times. 

Burr,  who  was  small  in  stature  like  Hamilton 
himself,  was  so  broken  in  health  by  rough  living  in 
the  field  that  in  1779  he  resigned  his  commission. 
He  was  well  established  at  the  Albany  bar  at  the 
time  Hamilton  was  beginning  his  studies,  but  when 
the  migration  to  New  York  took  place,  in  1783, 
Hamilton  stood  with  him  in  the  first  rank  of  lawyers. 
Burr  was  elected  to  the  Assembly  in  1784  on  a  ticket 
which  included  some  of  Hamilton's  friends.  He  was 
then  generally  classed  with  the  violent  Whigs,  who 
favored  a  policy  of  proscription,  but  when  Ham 
ilton  began  his  brilliant  and  effective  campaign 
against  that  policy,  Burr  did  not  join  in  the  fray 
but  dropped  out  of  politics  for  the  time.  He  was 
so  quiescent  in  the  struggle  over  the  adoption  of  the 


THE   DUEL  WITH  BURR  331 

Constitution  that  he  could  be  counted  on  neither 
side.  Hamilton  subsequently  characterized  Burr's 
conduct  in  that  emergency  as  "equivocal."  In 
1788  Burr  allowed  his  name  to  be  put  upon  a  legis 
lative  ticket  presented  by  the  defeated  Antifederal- 
ists,  but  he  was  not  active  in  the  canvass  and  he 
may  have  been  actuated  merely  by  a  desire  to  serve 
friends  who  were  striving  to  keep  alive  their  party 
with  a  view  to  the  future.  In  1789,  by  one  of  those 
twists  which  the  factious  character  of  New  York 
politics  could  produce  at  any  time  on  occasion, 
Burr  figured  with  Hamilton,  Troup,  and  others  of 
Hamilton's  friends  on  a  committee  selected  to  sup 
port  the  candidacy  of  Judge  Yates  for  Governor. 
Burr's  action  was  regarded  to  be  a  straightforward 
display  of  personal  friendship.  He  was  grateful  to 
Yates  for  kind  services  when  Burr  was  starting  in 
the  law,  and  he  never  failed  to  do  what  he  could 
for  Yates  thereafter.  Hamilton's  motive  was,  how 
ever,  merely  to  use  Yates's  candidacy  to  split  the 
Antifederalist  vote  and  thus  defeat  Clinton,  but 
Clinton  defeated  the  formidable  combination  by  a 
narrow  majority,  obtained  through  the  circum 
stance  that  his  home  county,  Ulster,  gave  him  an 
almost  unanimous  vote.  Clinton,  with  a  shrewd 
magnanimity  which  goes  far  to  explain  the  popu 
larity  which  six  times  elected  him  Governor,  selected 
Burr  as  his  Attorney-General,  the  appointment  tak 
ing  effect  in  September,  1789. 


332  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Hamilton  appears  to  have  remained  on  good  terms 
with  Burr  until  1791,  when  General  Schuyler  came 
up  for  re-election  to  the  United  States  Senate.  No 
candidate  appeared  in  opposition  to  him,  and  his  was 
the  only  name  presented,  but  when  the  vote  was 
taken  there  were  more  nays  than  ayes.  So  far  as 
one  can  judge,  in  a  case  where  there  is  nothing  of 
record  to  go  upon,  the  result  was  due  to  personal 
antipathies  excited  by  Schuyler's  vehement  partisan 
ship.  Somebody  had  to  be  chosen,  and  one  of  the 
Senators  proposed  Burr,  the  vote  resulting  twelve  to 
four.  When  the  news  reached  the  House  Burr  was 
put  in  nomination  there  too,  and  he  received  a 
majority  of  five  votes,  thus  winning  the  election. 

Although  a  letter  of  Schuyler's  refers  to  Burr  as 
"the  principal  in  this  business,"  the  available  evi 
dence  indicates  that  the  unexpected  result  was  a 
chance  concentration  of  favor  owing  to  Burr's  high 
social  and  professional  standing  and  to  the  fact  that 
he  was  regarded  as  a  moderate  man  in  politics,  stand 
ing  apart  from  the  regular  factions.  John  Adams, 
in  one  of  his  familiar  letters,  wrote:  "I  have  never 
known  the  prejudice  in  favor  of  birth,  parentage,  and 
descent  more  conspicuous  than  in  the  case  of  Colonel 
Burr."  In  substituting  Burr  for  Schuyler  the  mem 
bers  of  the  legislature  did  not  in  the  least  feel  that 
they  were  lowering  the  quality  of  State  representa 
tion  at  the  national  capital.  But  the  defeat  of  his 
father-in-law  seems  to  have  supplied  Hamilton  with 


THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR  333 

a  grudge  against  Burr  that  was  pursued  with  the 
constancy  of  a  Scottish  clan  feud.  Close  examina 
tion  of  Hamilton's  correspondence  leaves  no  doubt 
that  his  feeling  against  Burr  had  in  it  personal  en 
mity  as  well  as  antagonism  on  public  grounds.  He 
is  severely  critical  of  the  behavior  of  Madison  and 
Jefferson,  but  he  preserves  his  dignity;  when  he 
speaks  of  Burr  he  falls  into  reviling.  This  spirit 
does  not  crop  out  in  his  correspondence  until  after 
Burr  was  preferred  to  Schuyler  in  the  senatorial 
election.  Then  Burr  is  described  as  a  thoroughly 
unprincipled  character,  "for  or  against  nothing,  but 
as  it  suits  his  interest  or  ambition";  and  Hamilton 
declared,  "I  feel  it  to  be  a  religious  duty  to  oppose 
his  career." 

Hamilton  constantly  acted  in  this  spirit  toward 
Burr,  and  his  behavior  was  such  that,  according  to 
the  manners  of  the  times,  he  gave  ample  provocation 
for  the  duel  in  which  their  rivalry  culminated.  In 
deed,  it  may  be  said  that  for  years  before  the  fatal 
meeting  they  carried  on  a  political  duel  in  which 
Hamilton  was  at  a  disadvantage  through  the  warmth 
of  his  feelings,  while  Burr  acted  with  a  cool  calcula 
tion  which  gave  him  superior  ability  as  a  tactician. 
At  that  time  only  freeholders  with  an  estate  of  £100 
above  all  liens  had  the  franchise.  In  1789,  out  of 
a  population  of  324,270  in  the  State,  the  poll  was 
only  12,353.  Hence  New  York  politics  were  largely 
under  the  control  of  a  few  influential  families.  Any 


334  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

change  in  the  attitude  of  the  Livingstons,  the 
Schuylers  and  the  Clintons  had  political  conse 
quences.  Conditions  were  favorable  for  the  crafty 
diplomacy  in  which  Burr  excelled. 

Although  the  records  are  so  meagre  that  positive 
statement  is  scarcely  warranted,  Burr  does  not  ap 
pear  to  have  pursued  a  factious  course  as  a  member 
of  the  United  States  Senate.  No  complaint  against 
him  on  that  score  is  made  in  Hamilton's  correspon 
dence.  Although  generally  classed  as  Antifederalist, 
Burr  seems  to  have  occupied  rather  an  independent 
and  detached  position  with  respect  to  party  politics, 
and  he  certainly  obtained  a  reputation  for  calm 
ness  and  moderation  that  extended  beyond  all 
party  bounds.  Early  in  1792  there  was  a  movement 
in  the  Federalist  party  in  New  York  in  favor  of 
splitting  the  Antifederalist  vote  by  taking  up 
Burr  as  a  candidate  against  Clinton,  but  Hamilton's 
influence  was  successfully  exerted  against  the  scheme. 
After  the  election,  Clinton  nominated  Burr  as  judge 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  but  the  office  was 
declined.  Such  a  succession  of  public  honors  as  had 
come  to  Burr,  together  with  the  ability  and  dignity 
with  which  he  behaved,  caused  him  to  be  nationally 
regarded  as  a  rising  man.  In  the  Presidential  elec 
tion  of  1792  one  of  the  South  Carolina  electors  cast 
a  vote  for  him  in  preference  to  John  Adams  as  Vice- 
President,  and  in  1796  Burr  received  thirty  electoral 
votes. 


THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR  335 

In  later  years,  John  Adams  related  that  when 
Burr's  term  in  the  Senate  expired  he  was  loath  to 
continue  law  practice  and  would  have  rejoiced  in 
an  army  appointment.  Adams  proposed  to  Wash 
ington  that  Burr  should  be  appointed  brigadier- 
general  in  the  army  then  being  organized.  Accord 
ing  to  Adams  this  arrangement  was  defeated  through 
Hamilton's  influence.  If  this  be  true, — and  such 
evidence  as  is  available  supports  Adams's  opinion, — 
Burr  was  not  allowed  to  escape  from  a  position  of 
professional  and  political  rivalry  to  Hamilton  in 
New  York.  If  Hamilton  supposed  that  he  could 
crush  Burr  he  made  a  sad  miscalculation.  For  the 
moment  Hamilton's  power  seemed  to  be  secure. 
John  Jay  had  been  elected  Governor  in  1795  and  he 
was  re-elected  in  1798  by  what  in  those  times  was 
reckoned  a  large  majority.  Although  Burr  was 
elected  to  the  Assembly  from  New  York  City  in 
1798,  on  coming  up  for  re-election  in  1799  he  was 
heavily  defeated  and  as  the  Presidential  election  of 
1800  came  on  the  Federalist  party  was  in  power  both 
in  city  and  State.  The  prospects  of  the  opposition 
were  poor,  when  Burr  took  charge  of  the  campaign, 
which  he  managed  with  consummate  skill.  After 
much  negotiation  he  made  up  a  ticket  headed  by 
ex-Governor  Clinton,  with  Brockholst  Livingston 
as  an  associate,  thus  allying  two  great  family  con 
nections.  General  Horatio  Gates  was  brought  out 
of  his  retirement  to  draw  to  the  ticket  feelings  and 


336  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

sympathies  inspired  by  the  War  of  Independence. 
Every  name  on  the  ticket  was  picked  with  a  view  to 
personal  influence,  and  Burr  himself  shrewdly  re 
frained  from  including  his  own  name  in  the  list  of 
city  candidates,  although  at  the  same  election  he 
figured  as  a  candidate  in  Orange  C  unty. 

So  powerful  was  the  combination  which  Burr's 
management  effected  that  it  swept  everything  be 
fore  it  in  the  election.  Hamilton's  ticket  was  heavily 
defeated,  and  so  great  was  the  shock  that  his  char 
acter  gave  way  under  it.  As  soon  as  it  became  clear 
that  a  legislature  had  been  elected  that  would  choose 
Presidential  electors  favorable  to  Jefferson,  he  wrote 
to  Governor  Jay  proposing  that  the  outgoing  legis 
lature  should  be  convoked  in  special  session  to  pass 
a  law  requiring  Presidential  electors  to  be  chosen  in 
districts  by  popular  vote.  In  this  way  the  defeated 
Federalists  might  still  get  some  of  the  New  York 
electoral  votes,  and  Hamilton  urged  that  ain  times 
like  these  in  which  we  live,  it  will  not  do  to  be  over 
scrupulous."  Jay  filed  the  letter  with  the  indorse 
ment,  "Proposing  a  measure  for  party  purposes 
which  it  would  not  become  me  to  adopt." 

The  loss  of  the  New  York  electoral  votes  defeated 
Adams  and  yet  did  not  elect  Jefferson,  by  reason  of 
the  complications  of  the  electoral  system.  The 
original  draft  of  the  Constitution  provided  that  the 
President  should  be  elected  by  Congress,  which 
arrangement  would  have  given  the  United  States 


THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR  337 

a  constitution  much  like  the  present  constitution 
of  Switzerland.  But  the  small  States  feared  that 
this  would  put  the  Presidency  in  the  continual  pos 
session  of  the  large  States,  and  to  remove  such  ob 
jection  the  scheme  of  the  electoral  college  was  pro 
posed  and  accepted  as  a  fair  compromise.  It  was 
supposed  that  this  would  advantage  the  small 
States,  because  in  each  State  the  electors  should 
vote  for  two  persons,  only  one  of  whom  could  be 
a  citizen  of  that  State,  thus  insuring  some  dis 
tribution  of  the  vote  on  general  considerations.  But 
the  scheme  never  worked  according  to  this  theory, 
and  its  complications  have  always  been  trouble 
some  and,  indeed,  perilous.  It  is  plain  that  when 
the  electoral  colleges  began  to  vote  solidly  under  a 
party  mandate  there  would  be  a  tie  between  the 
persons  voted  for.  This  is  just  what  happened  in 
the  election  of  1800.  The  electoral  votes  of  the 
Jeffersonian  Republican  party  were  all  cast  for 
Jefferson  and  Burr,  so  the  election  did  not  decide 
who  should  be  President  and  who  Vice-President. 
The  Constitution  provides  that  in  case  no  one  re 
ceives  a  majority  in  the  electoral  colleges  the  House 
of  Representatives  shall  make  the  choice  for  Presi 
dent,  each  State  delegation  to  cast  one  vote.  A 
House  of  Representatives  elected  two  years  before, 
when  popular  sentiment  was  running  in  favor  of 
the  Federalists,  now  had  the  say  as  between  Jeffer 
son  and  Burr.  There  was  a  strong  movement  among 


338  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

the  Federalists  in  favor  of  preferring  Burr,  and  to 
counteract  this  Hamilton  wrote  letters  to  his  friends 
in  Congress  attacking  Burr;  whom  he  described  as 
a  man  of  daring,  energy,  inordinate  ambition,  with 
out  probity,  a  voluptuary  by  system,  sunk  in  debt, 
and  yet  indulging  himself  in  habits  of  excessive  ex 
pense,  with  great  talents  "for  management  and  in 
trigue,  but  he  had  yet  to  give  the  first  proofs  that 
they  are  equal  to  the  act  of  governing  well."  An 
unpleasant  feature  of  these  letters  is  their  telltale 
character.  One  finds  no  analysis  of  Burr's  public 
record  such  as  Hamilton  made  in  writing  against 
Jefferson  and  Madison;  but  instead  one  is  told  of 
Burr's  profligate  sentiments  avowed  in  private  talk, 
as,  for  instance,  that  he  quoted  with  gusto  Napo 
leon's  saying  that  "great  souls  care  little  for  small 
morals." 

To  a  large  extent  Hamilton's  judgment  of  Burr's 
character  was  verified  by  his  subsequent  career,  but, 
at  the  time  Hamilton  was  denouncing  Burr  as  a 
man  without  moral  principle,  Burr  himself  was  be 
having  in  a  way  that  looked  very  like  inflexible  hon 
esty.  Before  the  actual  result  of  the  voting  by  the 
electoral  colleges  was  known,  Burr  wrote  to  a 
friend  in  the  House  of  Representatives  that,  if  it 
should  turn  out  to  be  a  tie,  "every  man  who  knows 
me  ought  to  know  that  I  would  utterly  disclaim  all 
competition"  with  Jefferson  for  the  Presidency. 
He  added:  "As  to  my  friends,  they  would  dishonor 


THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR  339 

my  views  and  insult  my  feelings  by  a  suspicion  that 
I  would  submit  to  be  instrumental  in  counteracting 
the  wishes  and  expectations  of  the  United  States. 
And  I  now  constitute  you  my  proxy  to  declare  these 
sentiments  if  the  occasion  should  require." 

Language  could  not  be  more  plain  and  straight 
forward  than  was  used  in  this  letter,  and  as  it  was 
made  public  it  clearly  defined  Burr's  position  as  one 
of  opposition  to  any  attempt  to  defeat  Jefferson. 
According  to  Hamilton,  this  position  was  a  piece 
of  deep  finesse,  based  upon  the  expectation  that 
rather  than  take  Jefferson  the  House  would  accept 
Burr  without  any  effort  or  commitment  on  his 
part.  But  how  can  this  view  be  reconciled  with  the 
existence  of  those  great  talents  for  intrigue  which 
Hamilton  ascribed  to  Burr?  Examination  of  the 
evidence  leaves  scarcely  a  doubt  that  had  Burr  been 
willing  to  negotiate  he  could  have  been  elected  Presi 
dent.  Hamilton's  attacks  seem  to  have  been  so 
ineffectual  in  arresting  the  drift  of  party  sentiment 
in  Burr's  favor  that  one  may  infer  that  Hamilton's 
views  of  Burr's  character  were  not  accepted  by  men 
who  also  were  in  a  position  to  form  their  views  on 
personal  knowledge.  Hamilton  refers  to  their  favor 
as  "a  mad  propensity,"  but  the  fact  is  significant 
that  acute  and  well-informed  men  should  have  had 
this  propensity  in  spite  of  his  strong  censure.  Sena 
tor  Bayard,  of  Delaware,  to  whom  Hamilton  wrote 
the  most  severe  of  his  letters  against  Burr,  replied 


340  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

that  "the  means  existed  of  electing  Burr,  but  this 
required  his  co-operation."  This  Burr  steadfastly 
declined  to  give.  Hamilton  himself,  in  giving  an 
account  of  the  situation  to  a  New  York  friend,  wrote: 
"I  know  as  a  fact  that  overtures  have  been  made  by 
leading  individuals  of  the  Federal  party  to  Mr. 
Burr,  who  declines  to  give  any  assurances  respecting 
his  future  intentions  and  conduct."  Some  such 
assurances  were,  however,  given  in  behalf  of  Jeffer 
son,  who  was  elected  President  through  the  action 
of  some  of  the  Federalist  members  in  refraining  from 
voting  at  all.  Before  the  deadlock  was  broken  a 
Federalist  member  of  the  House,  William  Cooper, 
father  of  the  famous  novelist,  wrote  from  Washing 
ton,  "Had  Burr  done  anything  for  himself  he  would 
long  ere  this  have  been  President."  After  it  was 
all  over  Senator  Bayard  wrote  to  Hamilton  that  this 
result  was  not  obtained  until  it  had  been  "completely 
ascertained  that  Burr  was  resolved  not  to  commit 
himself." 

It  does  not  seem  possible  to  reconcile  Burr's  be 
havior  under  such  great  temptation  with  Hamil 
ton's  characterization  of  him  as  a  man  whose  "sole 
spring  of  action  is  an  inordinate  ambition,"  and 
who  is  "wicked  enough  to  scruple  nothing."  That 
such  opinions  were  not  held  by  other  Federalist 
leaders  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  respect  for  Burr 
remained  strong  among  the  Federalists  despite 
Hamilton's  efforts.  Three  years  later,  when  Burr 


THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR  341 

came  out  as  an  independent  candidate  for  governor 
of  New  York,  Hamilton  wrote:  "It  is  a  fact  to  be 
regretted,  though  anticipated,  that  the  Federalists 
very  extensively  had  embarked  with  zeal  in  the 
support  of  Mr.  Burr."  Hamilton  thought  of  bring 
ing  out  a  Federalist  candidate,  but  finding  that  im 
practicable,  his  influence  was  exerted  in  favor  of 
the  regular  Republican  candidate  and  Burr  was 
defeated. 

Although  he  must  have  been  well  aware  of  Hamil 
ton's  activity  against  him  at  every  turn,  Burr  seems 
to  have  avoided  personal  enmity  and  always  bore 
himself  with  his  habitual  dignity  and  composure. 
In  one  of  his  denunciatory  letters  Hamilton  re 
marked:  "With  Burr  I  have  always  been  personally 
well."  Of  course  Burr  would  have  called  Hamilton 
to  account  for  the  attacks  upon  his  character  had 
they  been  publicly  made;  but  Burr  made  no  move 
so  long  as  they  were  confined  to  private  correspon 
dence,  although  their  tenor  had  become  a  matter  of 
common  fame  and  a  spiteful  newspaper  put  the 
query,  "Is  the  Vice-President  sunk  so  low  as  to  sub 
mit  to  be  insulted  by  General  Hamilton?" 

During  the  political  campaign  a  letter  had  been 
published  in  which  Doctor  Charles  D.  Cooper  said 
that  Hamilton  declared  Burr  to  be  a  dangerous 
man,  adding:  "I  could  detail  to  you  a  still  more 
despicable  opinion  which  General  Hamilton  has 
expressed  of  Mr.  Burr."  Apparently  Burr  did  not 


342  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

hear  of  this  publication  at  the  time,  but  six  weeks 
after  the  election  he  received  notice  of  it.  He  sent 
a  friend  to  Hamilton  with  a  copy  of  the  publication, 
together  with  a  note  in  which  Burr  observed: 
"You  must  perceive,  Sir,  the  necessity  of  a  prompt 
and  unqualified  acknowledgment  or  denial  of  the 
use  of  any  expressions  which  would  warrant  the 
assertions  of  Mr.  Cooper."  Hamilton  was  taken 
by  surprise,  as  he  had  not  before  heard  of  Cooper's 
letter.  He  asked  time  for  consideration  and  did 
not  reply  until  two  days  later.  He  was  in  a  difficult 
position,  as  the  letter  did  not  really  misrepresent 
him.  The  gist  of  his  long  reply  was  that  he  could 
not  consent  "to  be  interrogated  as  to  the  justness  of 
inferences  which  others  might  have  drawn  from  what 
he  had  said  of  a  political  opponent  in  the  course  of 
fifteen  years  competition,"  but  he  stood  "ready  to 
avow  or  disavow,  promptly  and  explicitly,  any  pre 
cise  or  definite  opinion  which  I  may  be  charged  with 
having  declared  of  any  gentleman."  Burr  replied 
that  a  dishonorable  epithet  had  been  applied  to  him 
under  the  sanction  of  Hamilton's  name,  and  the  sole 
question  was  whether  Hamilton  had  authorized  this 
application,  either  directly  or  by  uttering  expressions 
or  opinions  derogatory  to  his  honor.  Hamilton 
replied  that  he  had  "no  other  answer  to  give  than 
that  which  has  already  been  given."  This  closed 
the  correspondence  between  the  principals,  and  the 
affair  now  passed  into  the  hands  of  their  seconds, 


THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR  343 

who  carried  on  further  correspondence  without 
modifying  the  attitude  of  the  principals,  and,  accord 
ing  to  the  manners  of  the  times,  the  two  men  being 
what  they  were,  a  duel  was  the  necessary  conse 
quence. 

The  correspondence  closed  on  June  27,  1804,  but 
time  was  allowed  for  the  principals  to  put  their 
affairs  in  order  before  the  duel.  So  it  happened 
that  Burr  and  Hamilton  met  as  courteous  table- 
mates  on  the  4th  of  July  at  the  annual  banquet 
of  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  of  which  both 
were  members.  It  was  noted  that  while  Burr's 
habitual  reserve  was  more  intense  than  usual, 
Hamilton's  characteristic  animation  rose  to  a  pitch  of 
gayety.  He  was  urged  to  give  the  company  the  old 
ballad,  "The  Drum,"  which  was  one  of  his  songs  on 
occasions  of  merry-making.  He  seemed  unusually 
reluctant  to  comply,  but  finally  yielded.  He  had 
a  rich  voice  and  he  sang  with  impressive  effect  the 
verses  which  told  how  a  recruiting  sergeant  knocked 
at  the  parson's  door,  and  said : 

"We're  going  to  war,  and  when  we  die 
We'll  want  a  man  of  God  near  by, 
So  bring  your  Bible  and  follow  the  drum." 

While  Hamilton  was  singing  Burr  leaned  upon  the 

table  looking  up  into  his  face  until  the  song  was  done. 

One  of  Hamilton's  last  acts  was  to.  prepare  a 


344  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

statement  as  to  his  motives  in  meeting  Burr.  In  it 
he  admitted  that  his  "animadversions  on  the  political 
principles,  character,  and  views  of  Colonel  Burr  have 
been  extremely  severe,"  and  that  while  he  certainly 
had  strong  reasons  for  what  he  said,  it  is  possible 
that  in  some  particulars  he  may  have  been  influenced 
by  misconstruction  or  misinformation.  He  added: 

It  is  also  my  ardent  wish  that  I  may  have  been  more 
mistaken  than  I  think  I  have  been;  and  that  he,  by  his 
future  conduct,  may  show  himself  worthy  of  all  confidence 
and  esteem  and  prove  an  ornament  and  a  blessing  to  the 
country.  As  well,  because  it  is  possible  that  I  may  have 
injured  Colonel  Burr,  however  convinced  myself  that  my 
opinions  and  declarations  have  been  well  founded,  as 
from  my  general  principles  and  temper  in  relation  to  simi 
lar  affairs,  I  have  resolved,  if  our  interview  is  conducted 
in  the  usual  manner,  and  it  pleases  God  to  give  me  the 
opportunity,  to  reserve  and  throw  away  my  first  fire,  and 
I  have  thoughts  even  of  reserving  my  second  fire,  and  thus 
giving  a  double  opportunity  to  Colonel  Burr  to  pause 
and  reflect.  It  is  not,  however,  my  intention  to  enter 
into  any  explanations  on  the  ground.  Apology  from 
principle,  I  hope,  rather  than  pride,  is  out  of  the  ques 
tion. 

Hamilton  left  two  farewell  letters  to  his  wife. 
One,  written  on  July  4,  ended  with  "Adieu,  best  of 
wives — best  of  women.  Embrace  all  my  darling 
children  for  me."  In  the  night  before  the  duel  he 
bethought  him  of  Mrs.  Mitchell's  kindness  to  him 
in  his  youth,  and  he  wrote  again  to  commend  her 


THE  DUEL  WITH  BURR  345 

to  his  wife's  good  offices.    This  letter  closed    with 
"Adieu,  my  darling,  darling  wife." 

The  meeting  took  place  at  seven  o'clock,  Wednes 
day  morning,  July  11,  at  Weehawken,  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  Hudson,  then  a  noted  duelling-ground. 
They  fought  at  ten  paces.  Lots  were  drawn  as  to 
choice  of  position  and  as  to  giving  the  word,  Hamil 
ton's  second  winning  in  both  cases.  Hamilton  was 
shot  in  the  right  side;  Burr  was  untouched.  Hamil 
ton  died  the  next  day  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
aged  forty-seven  years  and  six  months. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 
APPARENT  FAILURE 

IN  1797  Hamilton  received  from  Scotland  a  family 
letter  making  inquiries  expressive  of  the  interest 
of  the  family  home  stock  in  his  fame  and  achieve 
ments.  In  response  he  gave  an  account  of  his 
career,  in  which  he  said  that  he  entered  public  life 
because,  having  promoted  the  movement  for  a  new 
Constitution,  he  conceived  himself  to  be  under  an 
obligation  to  lend  his  aid  toward  putting  the  ma 
chine  in  some  regular  motion,  and  hence  he  accepted 
Washington's  offer  to  undertake  the  office  of  Secre 
tary  of  the  Treasury.  He  continued: 

In  that  office  I  met  with  many  intrinsic  difficulties 
and  many  artificial  ones,  proceeding  from  passions,  not 
very  worthy,  common  to  human  nature,  'and  which  act 
with  peculiar  force  in  republics.  The  object,  however, 
was  effected  of  establishing  public  credit  and  introducing 
order  in  the  finances. 

Public  office  in  this  country  has  few  attractions.  The 
pecuniary  emolument  is  so  inconsiderable  as  to  amount 
to  a  sacrifice  to  any  man  who  can  employ  his  time  with 
advantage  in  any  liberal  profession.  The  opportunity  of 
doing  good,  from  the  jealousy  of  power  and  the  spirit  of 
faction,  is  too  small  in  any  station  to  warrant  a  long  con 
tinuance  of  private  sacrifices. 

346 


APPARENT  FAILURE  347 

This  was  a  mood  that  became  more  confirmed  in 
Hamilton's  mind  as  time  went  on;  and  on  some  oc 
casions  swerved  his  conduct  from  the  chivalric 
ideals  that  ordinarily  governed  it.  The  strongest 
instance  is  that  unworthy  letter  to  Jay  proposing  a 
partisan  trick  to  set  aside  election  results.  Another 
instance  of  low  calculation  was  a  letter  to  Senator 
Bayard,  in  1802,  in  which  Hamilton  proposed  that 
an  association  should  be  formed  to  be  denominated 
"The  Christian  Constitutional  Society,"  its  objects 
to  be  "the  support  of  the  Christian  religion;  the 
support  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States." 
No  man  would  have  so  thoroughly  disdained  such 
claptrap  as  Hamilton  himself  when  acting  in  his 
proper  character,  and  it  is  noticeable  that  he  made 
no  attempt  to  push  the  precious  scheme  of  making 
religion  a  political  stalking-horse.  The  notion  was 
doubtless  the  outcome  of  a  mood  of  discouragement 
such  as  occasionally  afflicted  him  in  the  latter  part 
of  his  career.  It  was  in  such  a  mood,  during  the 
same  year,  that  he  wrote  to  Gouverneur  Morris: 

Mine  is  an  odd  destiny.  Perhaps  no  man  in  the 
United  States  has  sacrificed  or  done  more  for  the  present 
Constitution  than  myself,  and  contrary  to  all  my  antici 
pations  of  its  fate,  as  you  know  from  the  very  beginning, 
I  am  still  laboring  to  prop  the  frail  and  worthless  fabric. 
Yet  I  have  the  murmurs  of  its  friends  no  less  than  the 
curses  of  its  foes  for  my  reward.  What  can  I  do  better 
than  withdraw  from  the  scene?  Every  day  proves  to 


348  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

me  more  and  more  that  this  American  world  was  not 
made  for  me. 

When  Hamilton  reviewed  his  career,  with  calcula 
tion  of  results  rather  than  in  that  spirit  of  chivalry 
whose  heroic  and  generous  action  is  disdainful  of 
profit,  there  was  much  in  it  that  looked  like  failure. 
Against  the  remonstrances  of  his  nearest  friends  he 
had  given  up  his  law  practice,  exposing  his  family 
to  poverty,  to  lift  the  public  business  out  of  bank 
ruptcy,  and  his  own  recompense  had  been  calumny, 
persecution,  and  loss  of  fortune.  His  principal 
opponent  in  matters  of  administrative  policy  had 
shown  such  superior  address  in  all  the  arts  of  popu 
larity  that  he  had  reached  the  Presidency  and  was 
now  victoriously  sweeping  away  all  rivalry  to  his 
mastery  over  the  succession  to  that  office.  The 
Government  itself  had  been  given  a  twist  that  had 
frustrated  the  constitutional  design  of  direct  ad 
ministrative  proposals,  and  had  introduced  a  system 
of  committee  management  which  was  in  effect  a 
return  to  the  methods  of  the  Continental  Congress. 
"Committees  are  the  ministers,"  wrote  Fisher  Ames 
to  Hamilton  in  1797,  "and  while  the  House  indulges 
a  jealousy  of  encroachment  in  its  functions  which 
are  properly  deliberative,  it  does  not  perceive  that 
these  are  impaired  and  nullified  by  the  monopoly 
as  well  as  the  perversion  of  information  by  these 
committees."  The  vices  which  Hamilton  had  noted 
in  the  old  system — "tedious  delays,  continual  nego- 


APPARENT  FAILURE  349 

tiation  and  intrigue,  contemptible  compromises  of 
the  public  good  " — had  reappeared  in  the  new  system, 
with  increased  virulence.  With  no  regular  means 
existing  by  which  Congress  should  be  confronted  by 
responsibilities  exactly  defined  and  decisively  sub 
mitted,  the  electorate  had  nothing  to  go  upon  save 
vague  impressions  as  to  the  general  disposition  of 
candidates,  and  pretense  and  blandishment  were 
more  serviceable  than  integrity  and  ability.  Such 
conditions  gave  the  utmost  possible  scope  to  the  arts 
of  cajolery  that  are  the  traditional  bane  of  popular 
government,  and  in  those  arts  Hamilton  was  so  un 
skilful  that  as  an  electioneering  tactician  he  was  a 
sorry  failure.  To  this  on  his  own  account  he  was 
indifferent,  as  he  was  quite  free  from  envy,  but  he 
regarded  the  situation  as  a  defeat  of  the  purpose  of 
the  movement  to  form  a  more  perfect  union.  Still 
he  did  not  despair.  In  the  same  letter  in  which  he 
acknowledged  to  Morris  his  acute  disappointment, 
he  added:  "The  time  may  ere  long  arrive  when  the 
minds  of  men  will  be  prepared  to  recover  the  Consti 
tution,  but  the  many  cannot  now  be  brought  to 
make  a  stand  for  its  preservation.  We  must  wait 
a  while." 

It  is  a  satisfaction  to  note  that  when  facing 
death  his  old  chivalric  spirit  was  in  full  possession  of 
his  soul.  Among  his  papers  was  found  a  statement, 
undated,  but  manifestly  of  recent  composition,  in 
which  he  computed  that  he  was  actually  worth 


350  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

about  £10,000,  and  yet  he  feared  that  if  anything 
should  happen  to  force  the  sale  of  his  property 
it  might  not  even  be  sufficient  to  pay  his  debts.  He 
gave  particulars  to  show  that  the  obligations  he  had 
contracted  had  been  warranted  by  his  circumstances, 
but  to  protect  friends  who  had  from  mere  kindness 
indorsed  his  paper  discounted  at  the  banks,  he  had 
thought  it  justifiable  to  secure  them  in  preference 
to  other  creditors.  While  this  might  save  them  from 
eventual  loss  it  would  not  exempt  them  from  present 
inconvenience.  "As  to  this,"  he  said,  "I  can  only 
throw  myself  upon  their  kindness  and  entreat  the 
indulgence  of  the  banks  for  them.  Perhaps  the 
request  may  be  supposed  entitled  to  some  regard. " 

In  conclusion  the  statement  makes  this  noble 
declaration:  "In  the  event  which  would  bring  this 
paper  to  the  public  eye,  one  thing  at  least  would  be 
put  beyond  doubt.  This  is  that  my  public  labors 
have  amounted  to  an  absolute  sacrifice  of  the  inter 
ests  of  my  family,  and  that  in  all  pecuniary  concerns 
the  delicacy  no  less  than  the  probity  of  conduct  in 
public  stations  has  been  such  as  to  defy  the  shadow 
of  a  question."  He  went  on  to  show  that  he  had 
not  enjoyed  the  ordinary  advantages  incident  to 
military  services.  Inasmuch  as  he  was  a  member 
of  Congress  when  the  matter  of  the  claims  of  army 
officers  was  up,  he  formally  relinquished  all  his  own 
claim  in  order  that  he  might  occupy  a  disinterested 
position  in  effecting  a  settlement.  Nor  did  he  ob- 


APPARENT  FAILURE  351 

tain  from  the  State  of  New  York  the  usual  allowance 
of  lands,  although  he  had  "better  pretensions  to  the 
allowance  than  others  to  whom  it  was  actually 
made." 

The  shock  of  Hamilton's  death  to  his  family  was 
enhanced  by  the  fact  that  it  was  added  to  other  deep 
afflictions.  Less  than  three  years  before,  his  oldest 
son,  Philip,  who  more  than  any  of  the  other  children 
is  said  to  have  resembled  Hamilton  in  mental  en 
dowment,  was  mortally  wounded  in  a  duel  at  the 
same  place  where  Hamilton  himself  fell  later. 
The  oldest  daughter,  Angelica,  a  beautiful  and  ac 
complished  girl,  suffered  so  great  a  shock  from  her 
brother's  death  that  her  mind  was  impaired,  and  she 
was  under  her  mother's  assiduous  care  when  the 
family  was  again  stricken  by  the  loss  of  its  head,  to 
gether  with  impending  poverty.  There  were  six 
other  children,  ranging  from  eighteen  years  of  age 
to  five.  Friends  raised  a  fund  to  protect  the  estate, 
and  General  Schuyler  gave  his  daughter  such  help 
as  his  heavily  burdened  family  situation  permitted, 
but  he  too  died  a  few  months  later.  The  widow  had 
to  dispose  of  the  country  home  she  and  her  husband 
had  planned  together,  and  she  went  to  live  in  the 
city,  where  she  had  a  hard  struggle  to  keep  the  family 
together  and  provide  for  the  education  of  its  younger 
members.  Congress,  acting  with  characteristic  tar 
diness,  passed  a  law  in  1816  to  give  her  the  same 
commutation  for  back  pay  as  had  been  allowed  to 


352  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

other  officers  of  Hamilton's  rank,  and  with  accrued 
interest  from  1783  the  sum  amounted  to  $10,609.64, 
affording  great  relief  to  Mrs.  Hamilton  in  her 
necessities.  For  Hamilton's  expenses  in  equipping 
his  company  of  artillery  in  the  Revolutionary  War, 
no  reimbursement  was  ever  made. 

An  object  on  which  Mrs.  Hamilton's  heart  was 
set  and  which  she  never  ceased  to  pursue  during 
the  rest  of  her  long  life  was  the  vindication  of  her 
husband's  reputation  as  a  statesman;  but  in  this 
matter  also  she  had  to  endure  singular  affliction, 
for  whenever  she  made  arrangements  for  a  biogra 
phy  something  would  happen  to  frustrate  the  plan. 
Her  first  choice  was  the  Reverend  John  M.  Mason, 
who  had  delivered  an  impressive  funeral  oration  be 
fore  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati.  He  collected 
some  materials  for  a  biography  and  kept  that  pur 
pose  in  view  for  some  years,  but  eventually  aban 
doned  it.  In  1819  Mrs.  Hamilton  made  some 
arrangements  with  a  Mr.  Hopkinson, — probably 
Joseph  Hopkinson,  of  Philadelphia,  author  of  "Hail, 
Columbia," — but  in  some  way  the  negotiation  mis 
carried.  In  1827  Timothy  Pickering  took  the  mat 
ter  in  hand,  but  had  not  gone  further  with  it  than 
to  collect  some  material  when  he  died.  In  1832 
Mrs.  Hamilton  wrote  to  a  daughter:  "I  have  my 
fears  I  shall  not  obtain  my  object.  Most  of  the 
contemporaries  of  your  father  have  also  passed 
away."  Nevertheless  she  did  not  relax  her  efforts, 


APPARENT  FAILURE  353 

but  kept  writing  to  leading  Federalists  all  over  the 
country  to  collect  all  the  facts  she  could  about  her 
husband's  public  services.  Accounts  of  her  old  age 
describe  her  as  a  little,  bright-eyed  woman,  of  erect 
figure  and  brisk  ways,  retaining  in  her  conversation 
much  of  the  ease  and  brilliancy  of  her  youth.  Fi 
nally,  at  her  pressing  request,  her  fourth  son,  John 
Church  Hamilton,  accepted  the  task  of  preparing  a 
biography.  The  two  volumes  of  his  Life  of  Alex 
ander  Hamilton  appeared  from  1834  to  1840.  He 
also  arranged  his  father's  papers,  and  in  1849 
his  collection  was  purchased  by  Congress  and  was 
published  under  his  editorial  supervision.  Thus 
Mrs.  Hamilton  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  an 
object  of  such  dear  interest  accomplished  at  last. 
She  died  in  1854,  aged  ninety-seven,  her  mind  re 
maining  perfectly  clear  until  a  few  days  before  her 
death. 

John  Church  Hamilton  began  his  pious  task  with 
reluctance,  due,  as  he  said  in  the  preface  to  his  first 
volume,  to  "a  deep  conviction  of  my  incapacity, 
the  want  of  the  necessary  preparatory  studies,  and 
a  distrust  of  the  natural  bias  of  my  feelings. ' '  The 
two  volumes  he  produced  during  his  mother's  life 
time  brought  the  story  of  his  father's  life  down  to  the 
period  of  the  constitutional  convention.  By  that 
time  his  studies  had  so  enlarged  his  knowledge  of 
American  history  that  he  decided  to  shift  from 
biography  to  history  in  carrying  on  his  work.  The 


354  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

result  was  his  History  of  the  Republic  of  the  United 
States  of  America,  as  Traced  in  the  Writings  of  Alex 
ander  Hamilton  and  His  Contemporaries,  in  seven 
massive  volumes,  published  from  1857  to  1861. 
The  work  is  written  with  dignity  and  ability,  but 
its  plan,  taken  in  connection  with  the  natural  bias 
of  feelings  which,  as  he  had  anticipated,  he  was 
unable  to  escape,  revived  all  the  old  controversies 
and  detracted  from  the  true  greatness  of  Hamilton's 
statesmanship  by  exhibiting  it  merely  in  its  provin 
cial  setting.  It  naturally  engendered  reply  in  the 
same  spirit.  The  motive  of  Randall's  voluminous 
Life  of  Thomas  Jefferson  is  pointedly  indicated  by 
the  author's  remark  that  Jefferson  left  no  son  to  be 
so  "deeply  interested  in  his  mere  personal  defense" 
as  to  be  willing  "to  swell  pamphlets  to  books  to  roll 
back  the  tide  of  personal  vituperation  on  his  assail 
ants."  An  abiding  fashion  was  set  for  treating  the 
early  history  of  the  republic  as  a  drama  of  creation 
in  which  Hamilton  and  Jefferson  figured  as  Ormuzd 
and  Ahriman,  but  along  with  common  agreement 
in  this  view  went  violent  difference  of  opinion  as  to 
which  was  which. 

Among  the  unfortunate  consequences  of  this 
standing  controversy  was  that  it  diverted  atten 
tion  from  the  need  of  further  research  into  the  par 
ticulars  of  Hamilton's  life.  The  family  collection 
of  matter  with  which  John  Church  Hamilton  began 
his  labors  was  large  but  not  exhaustive,  and  he 


APPARENT  FAILURE  355 

does  not  appear  to  have  added  to  it  materially, 
editorship  and  interpretation  of  the  great  mass  al 
ready  in  hand  fully  occupying  his  time.  His  publi 
cations  supplied  the  material  used  by  various  bi 
ographers  until  Professor  William  Graham  Stunner's 
Alexander  Hamilton  appeared  in  1890.  In  this  he 
did  not  furnish  any  new  data,  but  he  gave  a  masterly 
portrayal  of  the  features  of  American  public  life 
in  Hamilton's  time,  thus  supplying  for  the  first  tune 
the  proper  background  for  a  correct  view  of  Hamil 
ton's  career.  The  obscurity  which  surrounded  Ham 
ilton's  birth  and  childhood  was  not  cleared  away 
until  Mrs.  Atherton  made  a  minute  investigation  of 
the  West  Indian  scene  in  collecting  material  for  her 
vivid  and  interesting  historical  novel  The  Conqueror, 
1902.  Nothing  but  a  meagre  and  scrappy  account  of 
Hamilton's  home  life  had  appeared  up  to  1910, 
when  a  grandson,  Allan  McLane  Hamilton,  published 
The  Intimate  Life  of  Alexander  Hamilton,  a  work 
whose  completeness,  sincerity,  fairness,  and  grace 
make  it  an  entirely  worthy  treatment  of  its  theme. 
This  work  wisely  avoided  consideration  of  Hamil 
ton's  public  career,  and  it  was  not  until  Frederick 
Scott  Oliver's  Alexander  Hamilton  appeared  in  1916 
that  his  achievements  were  disengaged  from  their 
provincial  setting  sufficiently  to  be  estimated  on  a 
scale  of  world  values.  This  splendid  work  marks 
the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  Hamilton  biography, 
in  which  the  old  controversies  fall  into  the  back- 


356  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

ground  as  among  the  local  incidents  of  a  career  whose 
importance  lies  in  the  universal  value  of  the  con 
structive  principles  he  discerned,  developed,  and 
applied.  The  old  view,  which  insists  on  regarding 
Hamilton  simply  as  a  protagonist  in  a  struggle  be 
tween  broad  and  strict  principles  of  constitutional 
construction,  between  national  and  State  authority, 
is  really  a  piece  of  narrow,  obtuse  provincialism; 
and  so  too  is  the  latest  antithesis,  produced  by  the 
revolutionary  spirit  of  the  present  time,  which  re 
gards  the  struggle  as  essentially  one  between  capi 
talism  and  agrarianism.  It  is  impossible  to  fit 
Hamilton's  career  into  such  a  framework,  as  will 
plainly  appear  when  mythology  is  discarded  and 
actual  facts  are  considered. 


CHAPTER  XXV 
REVISED  ESTIMATES 

IT  is  important  to  remember  that  Hamilton  was 
never  in  full  accord  with  the  party  with  which  he 
acted,  and  throughout  his  career  he  experienced 
detraction  from  party  associates,  including  some 
who  were  among  his  intimates.  The  matter  does 
not  become  fully  comprehensible  until  the  elements 
of  the  constitutional  movement  are  considered.  The 
starting-point  of  all  fair  judgment  upon  the  situation 
after  the  Revolution  is  that  attachment  to  English 
constitutional  principles  still  continued  to  be  the 
master  influence  over  political  thought.  When  at 
the  beginning  of  the  struggle  with  Great  Britain 
Jefferson  wrote,  "It  is  neither  our  wish  nor  our  in 
terest  to  separate  from  her,"  he  expressed  a  senti 
ment  held  by  all  the  leaders.  Although  the  events 
of  the  war,  and  particularly  the  necessity  of  accept 
ing  the  condition  on  which  alone  the  alliance  of 
France  could  be  obtained,  forced  the  American 
leaders  to  abandon  the  distinction  they  had  origi 
nally  drawn  between  loyalty  to  the  Crown  and  sub 
mission  to  taxes  laid  by  the  British  Parliament,  and 
induced  them  to  issue  the  Declaration  of  Indepen 
dence,  they  still  continued  to  believe  that  the  English 

357 


358  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

constitutional  system  was  the  best  practical  solu 
tion  of  the  problem  of  combining  liberty  with  order 
that  had  been  reached  in  all  the  long  history  of  man 
kind.  This  belief  presided  over  the  constitutional 
movement.  Jefferson  held  it  as  strongly  as  Hamilton 
and  avowed  it  just  as  distinctly.  The  admiration 
for  the  English  constitution  expressed  by  Hamilton 
does  not  account  for  the  charge  of  monarchical  sym 
pathies  brought  against  him,  for  that  was  the  com 
mon  state  of  feeling.  His  fear  lest  the  republican 
experiment  should  fail  was  too  generally  held  to 
supply  matter  for  particular  indictment.  None 
such  was  ever  filed  against  Benjamin  Franklin,  al 
though  he  repeatedly  declared  in  the  constitutional 
convention  that  "the  government  of  these  States 
may  in  future  times  end  in  monarchy."  The  truth 
of  the  matter  is  that  the  Hamilton  myth  originated 
in  divisions  and  cross-purposes  among  men  who  had 
a  common  regard  for  English  constitutional  prin 
ciples,  but  who  differed  somewhat  as  to  the  nature 
of  those  principles  and  also  differed  widely  as  to 
their  application  under  American  conditions. 

The  deepest  cleavage  was  with  respect  to  the  posi 
tion  of  the  States.  Hamilton  was  in  favor  of  giving 
the  national  Executive  power  to  appoint  the  State 
Governors;  Madison  was  in  favor  of  giving  the 
federal  administration  "a  negative  in  all  cases  what 
ever,  on  the  legislative  acts  of  the  States,  as  the  King 
of  Great  Britain  heretofore  had."  Hamilton's  plan 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  359 

would  have  put  the  States  in  about  the  same  posi 
tion  as  the  royal  colonies  had  been;  Madison's, 
in  about  the  same  position  as  the  charter  colonies. 
In  both  cases  the  subordination  was  to  be  complete, 
and  in  any  event  it  was  inevitable  if  federal  authority 
was  to  be  securely  established.  Madison's  plan  has 
virtually  prevailed,  through  extension  of  the  au 
thority  of  the  federal  courts  on  lines  laid  down  by 
Madison  himself  in  the  legislation  of  the  First  Con 
gress,  in  opposition  to  Hamilton's  views.  Hamilton 
held  that  the  federal  judiciary  might  be  established 
by  embracing  the  State  courts  in  the  system,  under 
the  supervision  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States.  That  this  plan  was  feasible  is  shown  by 
the  fact  that  it  has  been  successfully  introduced 
in  some  countries — notably  in  Switzerland.  Madi 
son,  however,  insisted  on  a  distinct  system  through 
out,  his  main  argument  being  that  in  some  of  the 
States  the  courts  "are  so  dependent  on  the  State 
legislatures,  that  to  make  the  federal  laws  depen 
dent  on  them  would  throw  us  back  into  all  the  em 
barrassments  which  characterized  our  former  situa 
tion."  Had  Hamilton's  plan  been  adopted  the  sub 
ordination  of  the  States  to  federal  authority  could 
scarcely  be  greater  than  it  is  now,  and  means  would 
have  existed  for  a  more  harmonious,  economical, 
prompt,  and  efficient  system  of  administering  justice 
than  is  possible  with  two  separate  systems. 
It  seems  to  be  now  the  general  opinion  that 


360  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

Hamilton's  plan  of  federal  appointment  of  State 
Governors  would  have  been  fatal  to  State  authority. 
An  elaborate  note  in  Senator  Lodge's  edition  of  Ham 
ilton's  Writings  says  that  "this  arrangement  would 
have  crushed  the  States."  It  is  impossible  to  arrive; 
at  any  fixed  conclusion  in  discussing  what  might  have; 
been,  but  it  may  at  least  be  observed  that  the  plar. 
has  had  no  such  result  in  the  constitutional  systen, 
from  which  Hamilton  took  the  idea.  The  English 
plan  of  executive  appointment  of  all  governors  is 
still  in  operation,  and  English  commonwealths  in  all 
parts  of  the  world  do  not  appear  to  be  inconve 
nienced  thereby  in  their  possession  of  self-govern 
ment.  Much  light  will  be  cast  upon  this  subject  if 
one  shall  seriously  consider  which  in  reality  pos 
sesses  greater  power  of  action — a  Canadian  prov 
ince  or  an  American  State  ? 

Another  deep  cleavage  was  over  the  extent  to 
which  the  Government  should  be  subjected  to  the 
control  of  public  opinion.  What  in  general  the  upper 
classes  in  society  were  most  intent  upon  was  protec 
tion  for  their  own  interests,  and  they  were  bent 
upon  securing  this  through  assertion  of  constitu 
tional  privilege  and  by  limitation  in  grants  of  power. 
They  wanted  an  executive  strong  enough  to  keep 
order,  but  not  strong  enough  to  interfere  with  their 
privileges.  In  Hamilton's  opinion  they  were  in 
clined  to  go  to  lengths  that  were  neither  wise  nor 
just.  So  early  as  1777,  when  the  first  constitution 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  361 

of  the  State  of  New  York  was  framed,  he  had  dif 
ferences  with  Gouverneur  Morris  on  such  matters, 
and  when  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States 
was  in  the  making  such  differences  were  renewed. 
Morris  favored  the  accumulation  of  power  in  the 
custody  of  the  Senate,  which  is  a  marked  feature 
of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  and  he  ex 
pressed  the  hope  that  the  Senate  "will  show  us  the 
might  of  aristocracy."  Madison  had  virtually  the 
same  thought,  when  he  said  that  the  Senate  "will 
guard  the  minority  who  are  placed  above  indigence 
against  the  agrarian  attempts  of  the  ever-increasing 
class  who  labor  under  the  hardships  of  life,  and  se 
cretly  strive  for  a  more  equal  distribution  of  its 
blessings."  Hamilton  did  not  dispute  that  there 
were  advantages  to  be  gained  through  the  political 
influence  of  wealth  and  social  position,  but  he  was 
not  willing  to  give  it  supremacy.  Madison's  Journal 
notes  that  he  expressed  himself  "with  great  earnest 
ness  and  anxiety"  to  the  effect  that  "the  House  of 
Representatives  was  on  so  narrow  a  scale,  as  to  be 
really  dangerous,  and  to  warrant  a  jealousy  in  the 
people,  for  their  liberties."  Hence  he  favored  an 
executive  strong  enough  to  keep  every  class,  high  or 
low,  rich  or  poor,  subdued  to  justice,  and  a  repre 
sentative  assembly  that  would  give  the  entire  mass 
of  the  people  an  effective  control  over  the  Govern 
ment.  In  the  constitutional  scheme  he  drafted  in 
1787  members  of  the  Senate  and  also  Presidential 


362  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

electors  were  to  be  chosen  by  districts,  apportioned 
in  a  ratio  to  the  basis  of  representation  in  Congress, 
upon  a  suffrage  limited  by  property  qualifications 
such  as  were  then  general.  But  the  number  of 
senators  should  never  be  in  larger  ratio  to  the  num 
ber  of  representatives  than  forty  is  to  one  hundred, 
and  the  representatives  were  to  be  elected  "by  the 
free  male  citizens  and  inhabitants  of  the  several 
States  comprehended  in  the  Union,  all  of  whom,  of 
the  age  of  twenty-one  and  upwards,  shall  be  entitled 
to  an  equal  vote."  Perhaps  none  of  Hamilton's 
recommendations  were  so  shocking  to  his  associates 
as  this  one  of  manhood  suffrage.  Agreement  was 
then  almost  universal  that  suffrage  ought  to  be  con 
fined  to  freeholders.  James  Madison's  last  political 
battle  was  fought  over  this  issue,  when  in  1830,  with 
the  aid  of  James  Monroe  and  others  of  the  elder 
statesmen,  he  succeeded  in  retaining  the  freehold 
qualification  in  the  Virginia  constitution,  thus  ex 
cluding  from  the  franchise  about  80,000  white  male 
citizens  of  his  State. 

Hamilton's  proposal  to  give  the  President  a  ten 
ure  of  office  during  good  behavior,  with  power  to 
appoint  State  Governors,  and  with  an  unqualified 
negative  upon  legislation,  should  be  viewed  in  con 
junction  with  the  democratic  control  over  the  au 
thority  of  both  President  and  Senate  which  he  sought 
to  provide  in  the  House  of  Representatives.  His 
scheme  was  really  nothing  more  than  a  democratized 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  363 

version  of  the  English  constitution.  If  the  provision 
of  an  unqualified  negative  over  legislation  looks 
autocratic,  it  should  be  considered  that  it  cannot  be 
so  in  reality,  in  view  of  the  presence  and  activity 
of  a  genuinely  representative  assembly.  Actual  ex 
perience  with  this  very  provision,  which  is  still  a 
traditional  feature  of  the  English  constitution,  al 
though  now  quite  dormant,  shows  that  it  has  no 
tendency  toward  absolutism  in  practice. 

Hamilton's  advocacy  of  broad  authority  was 
based  upon  democratic  principles.  He  told  the 
New  York  Convention,  in  the  course  of  his  fight 
for  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution:  "There  are 
two  objects  in  forming  systems  of  government — 
safety  for  the  people,  and  energy  in  the  administra 
tion.  When  these  objects  are  united,  the  certain 
tendency  of  the  system  will  be  to  the  public  welfare. 
If  the  latter  object  be  neglected,  the  people's  security 
will  be  as  certainly  sacrificed  as  by  disregarding  the 
former."  Hence  he  opposed  Bills  of  Rights,  on  the 
ground  that  a  good  constitution  is  itself  "in  every 
rational  sense  and  to  every  useful  purpose  a  Bill  of 
Rights";  and,  moreover,  that  "they  would  even  be 
dangerous,"  through  the  handle  they  would  give  for 
arrogant  interpretations.  "After  all/'  he  told  the 
New  York  Convention,  "we  must  submit  to  this 
idea,  that  the  true  principle  of  a  republic  is  that  the 
people  should  choose  whom  they  please  to  govern 
them.  Representation  is  imperfect  in  proportion  as 


364  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

the  current  of  popular  favor  is  checked."  In  fine; 
Hamilton  held  that  since  in  every  form  of  govern 
ment  power  must  exist  and  be  trusted  somewhere, 
able  to  cope  with  every  emergency  of  war  or  peace, 
and  since  the  extent  of  emergency  is  incalculable, 
therefore,  public  authority  is  not  really  susceptible 
of  limitation.  If  limitation  be  imposed,  the  effect 
is  not  to  stay  the  exertion  of  power  under  stress  of 
public  necessity,  but  is  rather  to  cause  it  to  become 
capricious,  violent,  and  irregular.  The  true  con 
cern  of  a  constitution  is  therefore  not  limitation  of 
power,  but  is  provision  of  means  for  defining  respon 
sibility. 

The  constitutional  ideal  aimed  at  by  Hamilton 
may  be  fairly  described  as  plenary  power  in  the 
administration,  subject  to  direct  and  continuous  ac 
countability  to  the  people,  maintained  by  a  repre 
sentative  assembly,  broadly  democratic  in  its  char 
acter.1  This  ideal,  although  it  anticipates  a  situa 
tion  which  since  his  time  has  been  apparently  the 
goal  of  democratic  progress,  was  intensely  obnoxious 
to  conservative  sentiment  when  Hamilton  presented 
it.  In  that  day  a  respectable  republic  was  conceived 
of  as  being  necessarily  antidemocratic  in  its  struc 
ture.  According  to  Madison  the  essential  distinc 
tion  between  a  democracy  and  a  republic  alies  in  the 

1  Expressions  of  opinion  to  this  purport  are  found  in  many  places 
in  Hamilton's  writings.  They  appear  with  particular  distinctness 
in  Nos.  23,  31,  and  84  of  The  Federalist,  and  in  a  brief  but  compre 
hensive  form  in  a  letter  to  Timothy  Pickering,  September  18,  1803. 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  365 

total  exclusion  of  the  people  in  their  collective  ca 
pacity  from  any  share  in  the  latter."  Hamilton's 
dissent  from  the  ideas  and  principles  of  the  con 
servative  reaction  which  produced  the  Constitution, 
not  only  explains  how  it  was  that  his  associates  re 
garded  him  as  monarchical  and  antirepublican  at 
heart,  but  also  how  it  was  that  he  played  so  unim 
portant  a  part  in  the  convention  itself.  The  stream 
ran  so  strongly  in  favor  of  security  to  right  and  privi 
lege  by  partition  of  authority  that  it  was  impossible 
for  him  to  stem  it  effectively.  The  Constitution 
was  not  what  he  desired,  but  he  at  once  accepted 
it  as  "the  best  that  the  present  views  and  circum 
stances  of  the  country  will  permit/'  and  he  applied 
all  his  powers  to  the  task  of  putting  it  in  motion. 
These  facts  amply  explain  the  misunderstandings 
which  harassed  Hamilton  in  his  own  day  and  have 
been  perpetuated  even  to  our  own  times.  If  one's 
opinion  be  no  longer  taken  from  tradition  but  shall 
be  formed  upon  the  evidence,  much  material  will  be 
found  in  support  of  the  belief  that  Hamilton  was 
in  advance  of  his  times  in  comprehension  of  demo 
cratic  principles  of  government  and  in  knowledge  of 
the  proper  application  of  them.  So  much  depends 
upon  the  point  of  view  that  estimates  of  the  value  of 
Hamilton's  ideas  will  probably  keep  changing  with 
the  times.  It  is  noticeable  that  in  England,  where 
democratic  progress  has  taken  place  on  the  lines 
which  Hamilton  anticipated,  his  statesmanship  is 


366  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

rated  higher  than  in  the  United  States,  in  which 
there  is  still  great  reliance  upon  the  partition  of 
power,  and  upon  impediments  to  action  which  Ham 
ilton  condemned  as  constitutional  frailties  apt  to 
have  fatal  consequences.  As  to  these  matters  his 
tory  has  yet  to  give  complete  instructions. 

A  habit  of  thought  which  obscures  the  truth  about 
them  both  is  that  which  views  Hamilton  and  Jeffer 
son  as  the  champions  of  opposing  theories  of  govern 
ment.  The  only  element  of  truth  in  this  is  that 
Hamilton  took  the  realistic  view  of  human  nature, 
which  holds  that  it  cannot  possess  freedom  save 
through  moral  discipline,  while  Jefferson  inclined 
to  the  romantic  view  that  humanity  is  naturally 
inclined  to  be  good  and  kind  if  well  treated,  and  that 
the  country  is  best  governed  that  is  governed  the 
least.  One  of  the  few  strokes  of  satire  to  be  found 
in  Hamilton's  writings  is  an  allusion  to  the  "en 
thusiasts  who  expect  to  see  the  halcyon  scenes  of 
the  poetic  or  fabulous  age  realized  in  America." 
Jefferson  did  not  think  a  modest  realization  of  hopes 
of  this  order  impracticable  if  the  country  should 
keep  to  plain,  simple  ways  of  living.  In  his  Notes 
on  Virginia,  he  said:  "While  we  have  land  to  labor, 
let  us  never  wish  to  see  our  citizens  occupied  at  a 
workshop  or  twirling  a  distaff.  .  .  .  Let  our  work 
shops  remain  in  Europe.  It  is  better  to  carry  pro 
visions  and  material  to  workmen  there  than  to  bring 
them  to  the  provisions  and  materials,  and  with  them 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  367 

their  manners  and  principles.  .  .  .  The  mobs  of 
great  cities  add  just  so  much  to  the  support  of  pure 
government  as  sores  do  to  the  strength  of  the  human 
body."  He  brought  up  this  point  again  when  writ 
ing  to  Madison  about  the  new  Constitution.  He 
said:  "I  think  our  governments  will  remain  virtu 
ous  for  many  centuries,  as  long  as  they  are  chiefly 
agricultural;  and  this  they  will  be  as  long  as  there 
shall  be  vacant  lands  in  any  part  of  America.  When 
they  get  piled  up  upon  one  another  in  large  cities, 
as  in  Europe,  they  will  become  corrupt  as  in  Europe." 
It  was  certainly  natural  for  one  holding  such 
ideas  to  view  with  alarm  Hamilton's  measures  for 
developing  banking,  commercial,  and  manufacturing 
interests,  but  it  is  a  mistake  to  regard  Jefferson  as 
either  democratic  in  his  principles  or  as  antagonistic 
to  authority  in  his  practice.  His  notion  of  a  proper 
Constitution  was  one  "in  which  the  powers  of  govern 
ment  should  be  so  divided  and  balanced  among 
several  bodies  of  magistracy  as  that  no  one  could 
transcend  their  legal  limits  without  being  effectu 
ally  checked  and  restrained  by  the  others."  While 
the  constitutional  convention  was  at  work  he  wrote 
to  Madison  suggesting  that,  to  give  stability  to 
jurisprudence,  "it  would  be  well  to  provide  in  our 
constitution  that  there  shall  always  be  a  twelve 
month  between  the  engrossing  of  a  bill  and  the 
passing  of  it."  His  views  as  to  the  relations  of 
federal  and  State  authority  seem  to  have  varied  in 


368  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

correspondence  with  his  party  interest.  Strict  con 
sistency  is  rare  among  politicians  the  world  over. 
But  Hamilton  was  undoubtedly  right  when  he  wrote 
that  Jefferson  "was  generally  for  a  large  construc 
tion  of  executive  authority  and  not  backward  to 
act  upon  it  in  cases  which  coincided  with  his  views/'1 
Under  the  Virginia  dynasty,  which  Jefferson  founded, 
the  Government  was  weakened  through  attempts 
to  reduce  it  to  rustic  dimensions,  but  its  federalist 
character  was  perpetuated.  This  was  so  notorious 
that  Madison  felt  impelled  to  excuse  it  on  the  ground 
that  with  Republicans  in  charge  of  affairs  things 
might  be  allowed  that  were  justly  regarded  as  danger 
ous  while  the  Federalists  were  in  power.2  On  the 
whole,  Jefferson's  career  was  more  a  help  than  an 
obstruction  to  the  success  of  Hamilton's  measures. 
It  was  Jefferson's  timely  aid  that  passed  the  Fund 
ing  and  Assumption  Bill,  and  his  success  as  a  party 
leader  was  of  immense  value  in  reconciling  popular 
sentiment  to  a  constitutional  system  which  the  high 
flying  Federalists  had  been  making  odious,  in  spite 
of  Hamilton's  warnings. 

It  has  often  been  remarked  that  Hamilton's  writ 
ings  afford  little  evidence  of  esteem  for  Washington, 
and  it  must  be  allowed  that  on  Hamilton's  side  the 
usual  relation  was  one  of  formal  respect  rather  than 

1  Hamilton  to  James  A.  Bayard,  January  16,  1801. 

2  Madison  to  William  Eustis,  May  22,  1823. 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  369 

sincere  affection.  Something  of  this  is  accounted 
for  by  the  fact  that  Washington  was  a  much  older 
man,  and  that  his  manners  never  encouraged  famili 
arity  in  any  one,  but  in  addition  there  is  evidence 
of  imperfect  sympathies  which  long  stood  in  the 
way  of  full  understanding.  There  is  much  to  sup 
port  Jefferson's  claim  that  originally  Washington 
was  more  disposed  to  confide  in  him  and  in  Madison 
than  in  Hamilton.  The  attitude  of  neutrality  which 
Washington  thought  prudent  for  him  to  maintain 
during  the  struggle  over  Hamilton's  financial  mea 
sures  would  naturally  strike  Hamilton  as  cold  indif 
ference,  and  the  frequency  with  which  Hamilton 
had  to  repel  attacks  upon  him  made  privately  to 
Washington  must  also  have  wounded  him.1  In  the 
course  of  the  Treasury  investigation  it  became  a 
question  whether  certain  arrangements  made  by 
Hamilton  had  been  actually  authorized  by  Wash 
ington  as  Hamilton  had  claimed.  As  to  this  Wash 
ington  wrote  such  a  non-committal  letter  that 
Hamilton  sent  a  reply  protesting  with  considerable 
warmth  at  the  way  he  was  being  treated.2  But 
Washington  was  more  and  more  drawn  to  Hamilton 
through  experience  of  his  powers  and  their  relations 
eventually  became  those  of  the  most  cordial  and 


1  See  his  letter  to  John  Jay,  December  18,  1792. 

2  Hamilton  to  Washington,  April  9,  1794,  vol.  Ill,  p.  190,  Lodge's 
edition  of  Hamilton's  Writings. 


370  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

trustful  intimacy.  When  Hamilton  resigned  his 
office  Washington's  feelings  broke  through  his  ha 
bitual  formality  of  phrase.  He  wrote  to  Hamil 
ton  in  terms  of  fervent  affection  and  esteem,  and 
Hamilton's  reply  was  equally  cordial.  Washington's 
regard  for  Hamilton  remained  warm  and  active  for 
the  rest  of  his  life,  and  Hamilton  made  proper  re 
sponse,  but  one  gets  the  notion  that  Washington 
was  fonder  of  Hamilton  than  Hamilton  was  of  him, 
which  in  view  of  all  that  had  happened  is  not  sur 
prising. 

If  one  can  escape  the  glamour  that  Hamilton's 
brilliancy  is  apt  to  produce  and  be  able  to  view  him 
simply  as  a  brother  man,  it  is  not  hard  to  see  that 
his  character  was  distinctly  of  what  was  once  a  well- 
marked  Scottish  type.  It  was  a  type  which,  in  its 
idealism,  in  its  gallantry,  and  in  its  self-sufficiency, 
•'has  been  depicted  by  a  great  artist  whose  nativity 
gave  him  special  insight  of  Scottish  character.  Ham 
ilton  is  an  Alan  Breck  with  a  genius  for  statesman 
ship.  Stevenson's  hero  in  Kidnapped  did  not  face 
tremendous  odds  with  greater  courage  or  in  higher 
spirits  than  did  Alexander  Hamilton  in  accomplish 
ing  his  mission.  And  in  both  one  notes  the  same 
traits:  generosity,  devotion,  promptness,  daring, 
pride,  conceit,  touchiness,  pugnacity,  shrewdness, 
acumen,  and  inexhaustible  energy — a  mingling  of 
high  and  low  such  as  may  be  found  only  in  characters 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  371 

built  on  a  grand  scale,  with  the  bold  irregularity  of  a 
mountain  range. 

His  talents  were  great  but  not  unequalled.  In 
philosophy  and  eloquence  he  is  so  inferior  to  Burke 
that  there  is  no  basis  for  comparison;  but  in  Burke's 
writings  we  have  the  polished  result  of  skilful  art 
istry,  while  Hamilton's  writings  were  hastily  pro 
duced  as  mere  incidents  of  his  political  activity. 
In  an  age  when  heavily  structured  style  was  in 
fashion,  his  pen  was  easy,  rapid,  and  fluent,  slipping 
at  times  into  some  negligence  of  diction  but  always 
vivid  and  impressive.  As  he  wrote  only  as  current 
events  prompted,  it  never  occurred  to  him  to  put 
his  ideas  into  systematic  form,  and  his  political 
philosophy  comes  out  only  in  the  way  of  side-lights 
upon  concrete  particulars.  It  is  precisely  this  that 
gives  The  Federalist  such  permanent  value  as  a 
political  treatise.  The  matters  with  which  it  deals 
are  just  such  as  always  crop  out  in  forming  a  system 
of  government,  and  it  abounds  with  maxims  for 
practical  guidance. 

Hamilton's  inferiority  as  an  electioneering  tac 
tician  is  easily  accounted  for.  The  case  exemplifies 
the  Italian  proverb  that  the  eagle  is  not  good  at 
catching  flies.  But  nothing  accounts  for  his  genius 
for  statesmanship.  Its  power  is  manifest;  but  its 
nature  is  inscrutable.  There  was  nothing  in  his  ante 
cedents,  in  his  education,  or  in  his  experience  to  ex- 


372  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 

plain  the  piercing  vision  into  the  springs  of  political 
action,  the  clear  discernment  of  means  for  practical 
attainment  of  purpose,  which  he  displayed  from  the 
first.  Of  political  ambition  in  a  personal  way  he 
was  singularly  devoid,  except  in  the  .military  line, 
his  rank  in  which  was  matter  for  concern  such  as  he 
never  seems  to  have  felt  about  purely  civic  honors. 
There  is  a  singular  concentration  of  purpose  in  his 
public  career,  which  is  the  secret  of  its  vigor  and  con 
sistency.  All  his  thought  and  effort  were  addressed 
to  the  great  question  which  he  propounded  in  the 
first  number  of  The  Federalist:  "Whether  societies 
of  men  are  really  capable  or  not  of  establishing  good 
government  from  reflection  and  choice,  or  whether 
they  are  forever  destined  to  depend  for  their  political 
constitutions  on  accident  and  force."  The  answer 
is  not  yet  quite  clear,  but  it  is  quite  clear  that  the 
greatest  contribution  to  political  method  on  the 
side  of  free  agency  is  that  which  was  made  by  Alex 
ander  Hamilton.  Anticipating  biological  principles 
unknown  to  the  age  in  which  he  lived,  he  stated 
the  law  of  political  development  to  be  that  "Every 
institution  will  grow  and  flourish  in  proportion  to 
the  quantity  and  extent  of  the  means  concentred 
towards  its  formation  and  support."  1  That  prin 
ciple  guided  his  statesmanship  and  the  result  has 
demonstrated  its  efficacy  beyond  even  his  own  large 

>  The  Federalist,  No.  XI. 


REVISED  ESTIMATES  373 

calculations.  It  still  remains  the  only  safe  principle 
that  political  theory  has  supplied  to  political  prac 
tice,  and  his  success  in  discovering  and  applying  it 
puts  Alexander  Hamilton  among  the  greatest  states 
men  the  world  has  produced. 


INDEX 


Adams,  John,  his  slur  on  Hamilton's 
birth,  4;  his  panic,  70;  antagonism 
to  democracy,  84;  charged  with 
unrepublican  principles,  262;  suc 
ceeds  to  the  Presidency,  314  et 
seq.;  his  character,  315;  makes 
overtures  to  Jefferson,  316  et  seq.; 
appoints  Washington  to  command 
of  army,  320 ;  antagonizes  Wash 
ington's  selection  of  officers,  321; 
is  overruled  by  his  Cabinet,  323; 
sends  another  mission  to  France, 
324  et  seq. ;  dismisses  cabinet  Joffl- 
cers,  324  et  seq. ;  his  rage  against 
Hamilton,  326;  is  denounced  by 
Hamilton,  327;  loses  the  Presi 
dency,  328;  his  regard  for  Burr, 
332,  335 

Adams,  Samuel,  145,  166,  191 

Algerine  corsairs,  179 

Alien  and  Sedition  Laws,  323  et  seq. 

Allison,  William,  80 

Ames,  Fisher,  215,  219,  227,  348 

Andr6,  Major,  108 

Antifederalists,  plans  of,  206;  efforts 
to  defeat  the  Constitution,  207; 
attitude  of,  in  Congress,  212 

Army,  Continental,  pay  of,  147; 
grievances  of,  154;  disbandment 
of,  155 

Arnold,  Benedict,  70,  107 

Asgill,  Captain,  134  et  seq. 

Asia,  British  man-of-war,  40  et  seq. 

Assumption  Bill,  233  et  seq.,  239, 
241,  245 

Atherton,  Mrs.  Gertrude,  78,  355 

Barbados,  18 

Barlow,  Joel,  American  poet,  177 

Bayard,  James  A.,  of  Delaware,  339, 

347 
Benson,  Egbert,  of  New  York,  178, 

227,  239 

Bible  Society,  American,  188 
Bill  of  Rights,  Hamilton's  objection 

to,  363 

Blackstone's  Commentaries,  217 
Bonaparte,  Napoleon,  325 


Boudinot,  Elias,  20,  43,  227,  238 

Brandywine,  battle  of,  58 

Brown  University,  151 

Burgoyne,  General,  61 

Burke,  Edmund,  96,  225 

Burr,  Aaron,  Rev.,  2 

Burr,  Aaron,  guides  Putnam's  divi 
sion,  47;  defeated  in  election  of 
1785,  178;  outgenerals  Hamilton 
in  election  of  1800,  328;  his  char 
acter,  329 ;  his  military  career,  329 
et  seq. ;  activity  in  New  York  poli 
tics,  331;  elected  to  U.  S.  Senate, 
332;  antagonized  by  Hamilton, 
334;  his  ability  as  a  political  tac 
tician,  335;  preferred  to  Jefferson 
by  Federalists,  338  et  seq. ;  refuses 
to  negotiate  for  Presidency,  338 
et  seq. ;  assailed  by  Hamilton,  338; 
kills  Hamilton  in  duel,  342  et  seq. 

Carrington,  Edward,  Col.,  267,  269, 
278 

Chase,  Samuel,  of  Maryland,  de 
nounced  by  Hamilton,  75 

Chastellux,  Marquis  de,  106 

Christian  Constitutional  Society, 
347 

Church,  Mrs.  Angelica,  104 

Church,  John  B.,  170,  313 

Clinton,  George,  74,  138,  159,  181, 
182,  183,  185,  190,  199,  203,  204, 
207,  218 

Cobbett,  William,  309 

Coleman,  William,  309 

Commercial  regulations,  State  diffi 
culties  over,  176;  Interstate  nego 
tiations  on,  178;  basis  of  call  for 
constitutional  convention.  180 

Congress,  Continental,  its  incapac 
ity,  70  et  seq. ;  Duchg's  opinion  of, 
72;  Henry  Laurens's  account  of, 
72;  its  fondness  for  display,  73; 
Washington's  opinion  of,  73;  its 
military  policy,  76  et  seq.;  antag 
onizes  Washington,  98;  Its  finan 
ciering,  143  et  seq. ;  proposes  flve- 
per-cent  impost,  145;  pay  of  its 


375 


376 


INDEX 


members,  172;  Its  scale  of  expen 
diture,  173;  appoints  Treasury 
commissioners,  174;  becomes  a 
migratory  body,  175;  meets  in 
New  York  City,  184;  opposes  the 
convention  movement,  185;  its 
change  of  attitude,  193;  recom 
mends  the  States  to  send  dele 
gates,  194;  dies  of  inanition,  206; 
its  creation  of  executive  depart 
ments.  210;  its  Treasury  manage 
ment,  214;  adopts  decimal  sys 
tem,  251 

Congress,  U.  S.,  debate  on  Hamil 
ton's  proposals,  236  et  seq.;  repu 
diation  proposed  but  defeated,  237 
et  seq.;  discrimination  defeated, 
239;  Assumption  Bill  defeated, 
241;  interest  of  members  in  na 
tional-capital  site,  242 ;  threats  of 
secession,  244;  Funding  and  As 
sumption  Bill  enacted  through 
bargains,  245;  incorporates  the 
Bank  of  the  U.  S.,  247;  establishes 
the  mint,  251  et  seq. ;  enacts  Tariff 
Bill  with  protectionist  clauses, 
258;  committee  methods  of,  273; 
adopts  resolutions  of  inquiry  into 
Treasury  management,  274 ;  votes 
down  attempted  censure  of  Ham 
ilton,  277;  resumes  Treasury  in 
vestigation,  294;  drops  the  mat 
ter,  296  et  seq. ;  makes  compensa 
tion  for  back  pay  due  Hamilton, 
351. 

Continental  money,  depreciation  of, 
144 

Conway,  General,  his  sarcastic 
query,  98 

Cooper,  Charles  D.f  Dr.,  341 

Cooper,  Myles,  Dr.,  president  of 
King's  College,  21,  30,  34,  35 

Cooper,  William,  340 

Cornwallis,  Lord,  122,  125,  128 

Cruger,  Nicholas,  employs  Hamil 
ton  as  clerk,  14 

Custis,  reminiscences  of  Hamilton. 
42,  43,  61 

De  Grasse,  Count,  122 

De   Heart,   Balthazar.    Hamilton's 

law  partner,  160 
De  Kalb,  Baron,  68 
Dickinson,  John,  29 
Drum,  The,  Hamilton's  song,  343 
Duane,  James,  89,   135,   138.   164, 

188 


Duchg,  Jacob,  Rev.,  68 
Duer,  William,  178 

Electoral  college,  split  votes  in,  316: 
tie  between  Jefferson  and  Burr 
337 

Empress,  the,  first  American  ship 
to  visit  China,  179 

Fauchet,  Joseph,  299 

Fawcett,  Rachel,  maiden  name  ol 
Hamilton's  mother,  5 ;  married  to 
J.  M.  Levine,  5;  leaves  her  hus 
band,  6;  united  to  James  Hamil 
ton,  7;  death  of,  9 

Federalist,  The,  201,  210,  218,  364. 
371,  372 

Federalist  party,  carries  New  York 
City,  203 ;  its  grand  pageant,  204 
et  seq.',  wrecked  by  dissensions, 
314;  arrogant  policy  in  Congress. 
323;  defeated  in  election  of  1800, 
328. 

France,  naval  war  with,  318 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  358 

Fraunces,  Andrew  G.,  calumniates 
Hamilton,  294 

French  Revolution,  effects  of,  278  et 
seq. ;  popular  sympathy  with,  284 

Freneau,  Philip,  260,  290 

Funding  Bill.     See  Assumption  Bill 

Gates,  Horatio,  General,  101,  106 

Genet,  Edmond,  arrives  in  U.  S., 
279;  his  objects,  282;  antago 
nizes  the  administration,  284; 
his  popularity,  285;  energetic 
measures  of,  287;  his  intimacy 
with  Jefferson,  288;  is  opposed  by 
Hamilton,  288;  ignores  Jefferson's 
wishes,  289;  is  abandoned  by  Jef 
ferson,  290;  defended  by  Freneau, 
290  et  seq. ;  defies  the  government 
in  the  case  of  Le  Petit  Democrate. 
290 

Gerry,  Elbridge,  213,  227 

Giles,  W.  B.,  of  Virginia,  elected  to 
Congress,  165;  his  character,  273; 
incites  Congressional  investiga 
tion  of  Hamilton,  274;  resolutions 
of  censure  moved  by,  276;  his 
resolutions  defeated,  277;  renews 
the  attack,  293  et  seq.;  again  de 
feated,  296;  argues  against  Jay 
treaty,  307 

Gilleland,  Captain,  127 

Gimat,  Lieut.-Col.,  125  et  seq. 

Goldsmith,  Oliver,  on  republics,  83 


INDEX 


377 


Grainger,  James,  Dr.,  3 
Graydon,  his  Memoirs,  66,  97 
Greene,  General,  43.  141.  174 

Hamilton,  Alexander,  birth  of,  2; 
technical  illegitimacy  of,  4-8;  his 
correspondence  with  his  father, 
10;  his  education,  13;  assisted  by 
the  Rev.  Hugh  Knox,  13 ;  clerk  in 
a  general  store,  14;  his  ambition, 
14;  his  description  of  a  hurricane, 
16;  sent  to  America,  16;  attends 
Francis  Barber's  grammar  school, 
19;  enters  King's  College,  21;  his 
studies,  22;  supports  the  Ameri 
can  cause  by  speech  and  pen,  24; 
his  original  principles,  26-28; 
pamphlets  by,  29-32,  39;  appeals 
to  Jay  to  suppress  rowdyism,  37; 
joins  State  militia,  40;  organizes 
an  artillery  company,  42;  takes 
part  in  battle  of  Long  Island,  44; 
first  meeting  with  Washington, 
47;  takes  part  in  battle  of  White 
Plains,  49;  his  rear-guard  action 
near  New  Brunswick,  50;  takes 
part  in  engagements  at  Trenton 
and  Princeton,  51;  becomes  secre 
tary  to  Washington,  52 ;  his  letters 
to  Rev.  Hugh  Knox,  52;  personal 
appearance  of,  56;  leads  scouting 
expedition,  58;  warns  Congress  of 
approach  of  British,  59;  his  work 
as  military  secretary,  60;  his  mis 
sion  to  Gen.  Gates,  61;  acts  as 
second  to  Laurens  in  duel  with 
Lee,  62;  assailed  by  Tory  press, 
63;  his  account  of  army  condi 
tions,  69;  denounces  a  member  of 
Congress,  74;  drafts  plans  for 
army  reorganization,  76;  sends 
reports  to  New  York  Convention, 
81;  financial  suggestions  by,  84 
et  seq.;  recommends  election  of 
Robert  Morris,  86 ;  drafts  plan  for 
national  bank,  87;  urges  creation 
of  executive  departments,  89-92; 
proposes  constitutional  conven 
tion,  93-95;  his  table  manners, 
97;  his  idea  of  a  wife,  99;  meets 
Elizabeth  Schuyler,  100;  his 
courtship,  103-111 ;  his  account  of 
Arnold's  treason,  108;  his  chival 
rous  treatment  of  Major  Andre", 
108;  his  marriage,  111;  memo 
randum  to  Robert  Morris  on 
national  bank,  112;  resigns  from 
Washington's  staff,  114-117; 


seeks  a  regimental  appoint 
ment,  121-123;  his  letters  to 
his  wife  during  Yorktown  cam 
paign,  123-124;  leads  assault 
on  British  lines,  124-128;  ad 
mitted  to  bar,  130;  composes  a 
manual  on  law  practice,  131;  his 
letters  to  Lafayette,  132, 141, 148; 
protests  against  condemnation  of 
Capt.  Asgill,  133;  appointed  Con 
tinental  Superintendent  for  New 
York,  135;  his  account  of  politi 
cal  conditions  there,  137;  drafts 
national  resolutions  adopted  by 
legislature,  139;  his  letters  to 
John  Laurens,  140;  his  activity  In 
Continental  Congress.  147-156; 
his  letter  to  Vicomte  de  Noailles. 
147;  his  letters  to  Washington  on 
army  grievances,  153;  writes 
"Vindication  of  Congress,"  155; 
advises  Washington  on  national 
policy,  157;  begins  law  practice, 
159;  his  fees,  160;  tries  suit  in 
volving  treaty  obligations,  161- 
165;  his  "Phocian"  letters,  167 
et  seq.,  167;  Is  challenged  by  Col. 
Oswald,  170;  organizes  Bank  of 
New  York,  170;  attends  Annap 
olis  Convention,  179;  drafts  call 
for  constitutional  convention,  180; 
elected  to  New  York  Assembly, 
182 ;  secures  State  participation  In 
constitutional  convention,  181- 
195;  elected  a  delegate  to  the  con 
vention,  194;  obtains  repeal  of 
prescriptive  legislation,  195;  ad 
vocates  recognition  of  Vermont, 
196;  his  record  in  the  constitu 
tional  convention,  197  et  seq,.; 
his  pamphlet  war  with  Clinton, 
200;  appeals  to  Washington  for 
aid,  201;  begins  The  Federalist, 
201  et  seq. ;  carries  New  York  for 
the  new  Constitution,  204;  urges 
Washington  to  accept  the  Presi 
dency,  207;  accepts  Treasury 
portfolio,  209;  excluded  from 
floor  of  Congress,  210;  his  expec 
tation  of  aid  from  Madison  dis 
appointed,  211-222;  his  report 
on  public  credit,  224  et  seq.;  his 
relations  with  Washington,  226, 
368-370;  his  habits  of  work,  229; 
his  plans  obstructed  by  Congres 
sional  opposition,  236  et  seq.;  his 
bargain  with  Jefferson,  245;  his 
plans  for  national  bank,  246;  his 


378 


INDEX 


cabinet  opinion  developing  the 
doctrine  of  implied  powers,  248; 
proposes  establishment  of  mint, 
249;  submits  report  on  manufac 
tures,  252;  his  discussion  of  the 
issue  of  protection  vs.  free  trade, 
253  et  seq.;  success  of  his  mea 
sures,  258;  his  breach  with  Jef 
ferson  and  Madison,  267  et  seq.', 
replies  to  charges  transmitted  by 
Washington,  270;  assailed  by 
Giles,  274;  prompt  response  to 
resolutions  of  inquiry,  275 ;  criti 
cises  French  attachments  of  Jef 
ferson  and  Madison,  278;  ad 
vises  Washington  on  foreign 
policy,  280;  his  views  on  treaty 
obligations,  284 ;  indifference 
to  partisan  clamor,  285;  drafts 
notice  to  Gene*t,  286;  frus 
trates  Gen6t's  plans,  288;  writes 
the  "Pacificus"  series,  288; 
writes  "No  Jacobin"  series,  291; 
is  stricken  with  yellow  fever,  291 ; 
notifies  Washington  of  his  desire 
to  resign,  292;  challenges  investi 
gation  of  his  official  conduct,  294 
et  seq. ;  suppresses  the  Whiskey  In 
surrection,  298;  again  challenges 
investigation,  299;  leaves  the 
Cabinet,  300;  gives  an  opinion  on 
the  Jay  treaty,  302;  encounters 
mob  violence,  303;  defends  the 
treaty  in  the  "  Camillus"  articles, 
306;  drafts  Washington's  Fare 
well  Address,  308;  his  journalistic 
activities,  309;  his  pamphlet  on 
the  Reynolds  scandal,  311  et  seq.: 
refuses  seat  in  U.  S.  Senate,  313; 
builds  "The  Grange,"  313;  be 
comes  private  adviser  of  Adams's 
Cabinet,  314  et  seq.',  his  support 
of  Thomas  Pinckney  for  Presi 
dent,  316;  appointed  major-gen 
eral  by  Washington,  320;  encoun 
ters  opposition  of  Adams,  321  et 
seq.;  distressed  by  variance  with 
Knox,  321;  opposes  the  sedition 
law,  324;  denounces  Adams's 
conduct.  327;  is  outgeneralled  by 
Burr  in  New  York,  328;  his  early 
relations  with  Burr,  332;  his  ani 
mosity  against  Burr,  333;  assails 
Burr's  character,  338  et  seq.;  is 
called  to  account  by  Burr,  342; 
accepts  Burr's  challenge,  343;  his 
account  of  his  motives,  344;  his 
farewell  messages  to  his  wife,  344; 


is  fatally  wounded,  345;  his  letter 
to  a  Scotch  relative,  346;  his 
moods  of  discouragement,  347  et 
seq.;  apparent  failure  of  his  ca 
reer,  348;  his  chivalric  spirit,  349; 
his  estate  impoverished  by  his 
death,  350;  afflictions  of  his  fam 
ily,  351 ;  tardy  action  by  Congress 
on  his  claim  for  back  pay,  351; 
biographies  of,  352  et  seq.;  esti 
mates  of  his  character  and  achieve 
ments,  357-373;  his  democratic 
ideals,  361-364;  his  principles 
contrasted  with  those  of  Jeffer 
son,  366  et  seq. ;  his  literary  style, 
371;  his  genius  for  statesmanship, 
371  et  seq. 

Hamilton,  Mrs.  (see  Elizabeth 
Schuyler).  difficulties  in  which  she 
was  left,  351;  her  life-long  efforts 
to  vindicate  Hamilton's  reputa 
tion,  352;  her  death,  353 

Hamilton,  Allan  McLane,  355 

Hamilton,  James,  his  ancestry,  6; 
unsuccessful  in  business.  8  et  seq. ; 
correspondence  with  his  son,  10 
et  seq. 

Hamilton,  John  Church,  35,  47,  51, 
125,  131,  169,  353,  354 

Hamilton,  Philip  H.,  killed  in  duel, 
351 

Hammond,  George,  British  minis 
ter,  289 

Hancock,  John,  59 

Harrison,  R.  H.,  aide  to  Washing 
ton,  58,  131 

"Hearts  of  Oak,"  militia  company 
joined  by  Hamilton,  40  et  seq. 

Henfleld,  Gideon,  acquittal  of,  284 

Henry,  Patrick,  191 

Hopkinson,  Joseph,  352 

Howe,  Gen.,  44,  45,  48,  50 

Howell,  David,  151 

Huddy,  Capt.,  133 

Hume,  David,  on  government,  83 

Hunt,  Gaillard,  219 

Irving,  Washington,  50 

Jackson,  James,  of  Georgia,  237 
Jay,  John,  marries  Miss  Livingston, 
20;  member  of  Continental  Con 
gress,  37;  contributes  to  The  Fed 
eralist,  203 ;  negotiates  treaty  with 
England,  302;  burned  in  effigy, 
303;  his  patriotic  self-sacrifice, 
305;  is  consulted  on  Washington's 
Farewell  Address,  308;  offers  U.  S. 


INDEX 


379 


Senatorship  to  Hamilton,  313; 
elected  governor,  325;  declines 
party  tactics  proposed  by  Hamil 
ton,  336 

Jay  treaty,  ratified  by  Senate,  302; 
analyzed  by  Hamilton,  303;  pop 
ular  rage  against,  303;  sustained 
by  House  of  Representatives,  307 ; 
resented  by  French  Government, 
318 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  quotes  story 
about  Hamilton's  convention  rec 
ord,  196;  is  appointed  Secretary 
of  State,  223;  his  nationalist 
views,  243  et  seq. ;  deplores  defeat 
of  assumption,  244;  arranges  a 
bargain  for  its  enactment,  245; 
holds  creation  of  a  national  bank 
to  be  unconstitutional,  247 ;  advo 
cates  strict-construction  princi 
ples,  249;  advocates  decimal  sys 
tem,  251;  secures  a  newspaper 
organ,  260;  makes  overtures  to 
Thomas  Paine,  261;  makes 
friendly  advances  to  Hamilton, 
263;  disturbed  by  State  opposi 
tion  to  assumption,  264;  recants 
and  turns  against  Hamilton,  265; 
abets  attacks  on  Hamilton,  266; 
tries  to  turn  "Washington  against 
Hamilton,  267  et  seq. ;  abets  Con 
gressional  war  on  Hamilton,  273 ; 
disappointment  over  result,  277; 
his  attachment  to  France,  279  et 
seq. ;  opposes  a  declaration  of  neu 
trality,  282;  favors  unconditional 
reception  of  Gene"t,  286;  induces 
Madison  to  reply  to  "Paciflcus," 
288;  complains  of  Gengt's  beha 
vior,  289;  joins  in  demanding 
GeneTs  recall,  290;  offers  his  res 
ignation,  292 ;  leaves  the  Cabinet, 
295;  his  opposition  to  the  Excise 
Law,  296 ;  abets  opposition  to  the 
Jay  treaty,  303  et  seq.;  ignores 
personal  charges,  310;  tied  with 
Burr  for  Presidency,  337  et  seq.; 
his  admiration  for  the  English 
constitution,  358;  his  ideals  com 
pared  with  those  of  Hamilton, 
366  et  seq. 

Johnson,  Samuel,  Dr.,  3 

Jones,  Samuel,  188 

Judiciary,  the,  conflict  between 
Hamilton  and  Madison  over,  359 

King  of  France,  217 
King's  College,  21,  24,  42 


Knox,  Henry,  Gen.,  134,  223,  286. 

320,  321,  322 
Knox,  Hugh,  Rev.,  2,  13,  20,  27,  52, 

64 

Lafayette,  Marquis  de,  98,  123,  125 

Lamb,  John,  Gen.,  126,  165,  170, 
199,  204,  207 

Lansing,  John,  194,  196,  197,  199 

Laurens,  Henry,  72 

Laurens,  John,  76,  99,  100,  109,  127, 
141 

Leake,  Isaac  Q.,  170 

Ledyard,  Isaac,  168 

Lee,  Arthur,  145,  174 

Lee,  Charles,  Gen.,  61,  62 

Lee,  Henry,  Gen.,  125 

Lee,  Will,  Washington's  body-ser 
vant,  60 

L'Enfant,  Pierre,  Major,  204 

Livermore,  Samuel,  of  New  Hamp 
shire,  237,  240 

Livingston,  Robert,  80 

Lodge,  H.  C.,  U.  S.  Senator,  360 

Louis  XVI  of  France,  135,  281 

Luzerne,  Chevalier  de  la,  69 

Lytton,  Peter,  maternal  uncle  of 
Hamilton,  9 

Maclay,  William,  of  Pennsylvania, 
220,  236 

McHenry,  James,  of  Maryland,  112, 
132,  321,  322,  323,  326 

Madison,  James,  on  proceedings  of 
Continental  Congress,  145;  his 
note  of  Hamilton's  speech,  151; 
as  to  the  Annapolis  convention, 
181;  assists  Hamilton  in  the  Fed 
eralist  series,  203;  turns  against 
Hamilton,  211  ct  seq.;  his  political 
principles,  218  et  seq.;  opposes 
Hamilton's  plans,  222  ei  seq. ;  ad 
vocates  discrimination  among  the 
public  creditors,  238  et  seq.;  op 
poses  assumption,  240;  joins  in 
bargain  for  the  Potomac  site,  245 : 
opposes  the  Bank  of  the  United 
States,  247  et  seq. ;  his  attitude  on 
coinage  designs,  252 ;  promotes  en 
actment  of  tariff  bill  with  protec 
tionist  features,  258;  visits  Philip 
Freneau,  260;  desires  Thomas 
Paine's  aid,  261;  disapproves 
clamor  against  assumption,  262; 
falls  in  line  with  State  sentiment, 
264;  his  change  of  front,  266  et 
seq.;  his  character  analyzed  by 
Hamilton,  268  et  seq.;  prepares 


380 


INDEX 


a  farewell  address  for  Washing 
ton,  272,  308;  abets  Congres 
sional  attack  on  Hamilton,  273 
et  seq.;  writes  "Helvidius"  arti 
cles,  288  et  seq.  i  declines  to  at 
tempt  a  reply  to  Hamilton's 
"Camillus"  articles,  306;  de 
clines  Adams's  offer  of  French  mis 
sion,  317;  favors  subordination 
of  States,  359  et  seq. ;  his  views  as 
to  functions  of  Senate,  361;  op 
poses  manhood  suffrage,  362;  dis 
tinguishes  between  a  democracy 
and  a  republic,  364 

Malcolm,  Col.,  178,  187  et  seq. 

Marshall,  Chief  Justice,  284 

Mason,  George,  of  Virginia,  196,  269 

Mason,  John  M..  Rev.,  25,  352 

Meade,  Col.,  one  of  Washington's 
aides,  129 

Mitchell,  Mrs.,  an  aunt  of  Hamil 
ton,  9,  11,  344 

Monroe,  James,  244,  245,  310,  311, 
362 

Montesquieu,  216  et  seq. 

Morris,  Gouverneur,  55,  80,  81,  347. 
349,  361 

Morris,  Robert,  delegate  to  Conti 
nental  Congress,  84;  becomes 
Superintendent  of  Finance,  86;  his 
difficulties  with  Congress,  88;  ap 
points  Hamilton  Continental  Su 
perintendent  in  New  York,  135 
et  seq.;  finances  the  Yorktown 
campaign,  145;  efforts  to  carry 
the  impost,  148;  raises  money  to 
pay  the  troops,  155;  resigns,  174; 
refuses  the  Treasury  portfolio, 
209;  his  official  procedure,  216; 
bargains  for  national-capital  site, 
243 

Muhlenberg,  Speaker,  310  et  seq. 

National  capital,  Potomac  site,  245 
Nevis,  Hamilton's  birthplace,  1,  19 
New   England,    Hamilton's   regard 
for,  25  et  seq. ;  its  sectional  particu 
larism,  145 

New  York  politics,  family  influence 
in,  333 

Oliver.  Frederick  Scott,  355 
Oswald,    Eleazer,    Col.,    challenges 

Hamilton.  170 
Otto,  French  chargg  d'affaires,  181 

Page,  John,  of  Virginia,  214,  237, 

296 
Paine,  Thomas,  261 


Pickering,  Timothy,  56,  326.  352, 

364 

Pinckney,  C.  C.,  320,  321,  323 
Pinckney,  Thomas,  316 
Pitt,  William,  256 
President,  functions  of,  217 
Princeton,  battle  of,  51 
Princeton  University,  151 

Randall,  H.  S.,  354 

Randolph,  Edmund,  181,  223,  247. 
272,  283,  286.  298,  299 

Reed,  Joseph,  73 

Reynolds  case,  310  et  seq. 

Rivington,  James,  his  press  de 
stroyed,  36 

Rutledge,  John,  152 

St.  Clair,  Arthur,  Gen.,  220 

St.  Kitts,  Island  of,  3,  19 

Schuyler,  Elizabeth,  meets  Hamil 
ton,  100;  courted  by  him.  103  et 
seq.',  marries  him,  111;  her  char 
acter,  113.  See  Mrs.  Hamilton 

Schuyler,  Philip,  Gen.,  Hamilton's 
father-in-law,  4;  his  family,  19; 
his  career,  101  et  seq. ;  becomes  in 
timate  with  Hamilton,  103;  his 
Albany  mansion,  112;  tries  to  dis 
suade  Hamilton  from  resigning, 
119;  his  activity  in  N.  Y.  Senate, 
139;  promotes  Hamilton's  elec 
tion  to  Continental  Congress, 
140;  his  political  influence.  225; 
relates  an  anecdote  of  Hamilton, 
229;  defeated  for  re-election  to 
U.  S.  Senate,  332;  death  of,  351 

Seabury,  Samuel,  Rev.  Dr.,  30 

Sedgwick,  Theodore,  of  Mass.,  215, 
324 

Shewkirk.  Rev.  Mr.,  his  diary,  65 

Smith,  Adam,  256 

Smith,  William,  of  S.  C.,  276 

Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  343,  352 

Steuben,  Baron,  204 

Stirling,  Lord,  43.  45 

Stone,  William,  of  Maryland,  240 

Sugar-cane,  poem  on,  3 

Sullivan,  John,  Gen.,  85 

Sullivan,  William,  reminiscences  by. 
55 

Sumner.  W.  G.,  88.  147,  355 

Supreme  Court  of  U.  S.,  248 

Switzerland,  92,  359 

Talleyrand,  319 

Tilghman,  Tench,  Col.,  100,  122 

Trenton,  surprise  of,  51 


INDEX 


381 


Troup,  Robert,  classmate  of  Ham 
ilton,  24;  his  reminiscences,  26, 
34,  40;  captured  by  British,  45; 
aids  Hamilton's  legal  studies,  131 ; 
his  political  cooperation,  178;  ad 
vises  Hamilton  against  taking 
office,  209;  censures  Hamilton's 
indiscretion,  328 ;  supports  Yates's 
candidacy,  331 

Varick,  Richard.  164, 186, 187  et  seq. 
Venable,  Abraham,  310  et  seq. 

Wadsworth,  commissary-general,  75 
War  of  the  Revolution,  its  conduct, 
67 ;  effects  of  Congressional  inter 
ference,  77;  the  Yorktown  cam 
paign,  122  et  seq. 

Washington,  George,  his  forces  for 
defense  of  New  York,  44;  his  re 
treat,  46;  fights  battle  of  Harlem 
Heights,  48;  retreats  into  New 
Jersey,  50;  attacks  Hessians  at 
Trenton,  51;  his  personal  appear 
ance,  55;  his  difficulties  over  staff 
appointments,  57;  scenes  at  his 
headquarters,  60;  sends  Hamilton 
on  a  mission  to  Gates,  61;  de 
nounces  General  Lee,  61;  his 
opinion  of  militia,  69;  his  reports 
to  Congress  on  army  conditions, 
76;  Congressional  cabal  against, 
98;  Mrs.  Washington  joins  him  at 
Morristown,  102;  accidentally  of 
fends  Hamilton,  114;  his  embar 
rassments  in  the  Asgill  case,  134; 
correspondence  with  Hamilton  on 
army  grievances,  153-155,  173, 
176;  his  circular  letter  to  State 
governors,  175;  plans  Chesapeake 
A  Ohio  canal,  177;  invites  State 
commissioners  to  Mt.  Vernon, 
178;  Gov.  Clinton's  support  of, 
190;  responds  to  Hamilton's  ap 
peal,  201 ;  reluctance  to  accepting 


Presidency,  207;  makes  cabinet 
appointments,  223;  his  depen 
dence  on  Madison,  225  et  seq.; 
asks  Madison  to  prepare  veto  of 
Bank  Bill,  247;  his  scruples  re 
moved  by  Hamilton's  argument, 
248  et  seq. ;  ignores  Jefferson's  ob 
jections  to  a  military  academy, 
249;  action  on  charges  against 
Hamilton,  270;  favors  assump 
tion,  271;  desires  to  retire  from 
public  life,  271  et  seq.;  requests 
cabinet  opinions  on  French  de 
mands,  280;  resents  attacks  of 
GenSt's  sympathizers,  286;  har 
assed  by  dissensions  in  his  Cabi 
net,  290;  applies  to  Supreme 
Court  for  advice,  290;  break 
up  of  his  Cabinet,  292;  opinion 
on  the  Whiskey  Insurrection, 
297;  applies  to  Hamilton  on 
the  Jay  treaty,  302;  asks  Hamil 
ton  to  prepare  his  Farewell  Ad 
dress,  307;  takes  command  of 
army  at  Adams's  request,  320; 
controversy  with  Adams  over 
army  appointments,  320  et  seq.', 
death  of,  325 ;  his  esteem  of  Ham 
ilton,  368,  370 

West  Indies,  relation  to  America,  1 ; 
style  of  living  in,  2;  settlers  hi,  4; 
political  conditions  hi,  16  et  seq. 

Whigs,  prescriptive  policy  of,  101 

Whiskey  Insurrection,  296  et  seq. 

White,  Philip,  133 

Wolcott,  Oliver,  of  Connecticut,  315 

Wolcott,  Oliver,  Secretary  of  Trea 
sury,  315,  324,  326 

Woodhull,  Nathaniel,  38 

X  Y  Z  dispatches,  319,  324 

Yates,  Robert,  194,  196,  197,  199, 

200,  331 
Yellow  fever,  in  Philadelphia.  291 


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